The voting for the first round of the French Presidential elections is underway in the Union Territory of Puducherry with over 4,000 French citizens residing in the former colony expected to exercise their franchise.
4,564 French citizens residing in Kerala, Tamil Nadu and the Union Territory of Puducherry can cast their vote in favour of one of the 12 candidates running for the office in the first round.
The voting is taking place from 8 am to 7 pm today (Sunday) at five locations across the Union Territory of Puducherry and one in Chennai.
"The team of the consulate general is mobilised to ensure French citizens living in India can vote, so we have six polling stations, 1 Chennai, 4 in Pondicherry (Puducherry) and one in Karaikal (part of the Union Territory of Puducherry). We are expecting 4568 voters registered on our consular elections list and everything is going well so far," said Lise Talbot Barre, Consulate General of France in Pondicherry (Puducherry) and Chennai.
The elections will elect the President of the French Republic for a five-year term. The primary contenders for the top job are incumbent President Emmanuel Macron and far-right leader Marine Le Pen.
France offers its citizens abroad, who are over 18 years of age and have registered to be on the electoral list in the Consulate General of France to vote in person, in their country of residence, an opportunity to vote for the presidential elections, referendums, legislative elections, European elections and elections of the councillors of French citizens abroad.
The 2022 elections will be the 12th presidential election of the Fifth Republic of France and the eleventh by direct universal suffrage. If no candidate wins an absolute majority of votes cast in the first round, a run-off election will be held between the top two candidates. The Presidential elections will be followed by the legislative elections in June later this year.
The second round of this year's Presidential elections will be held on April 24.
( With inputs from ANI )
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