Dozens of sports personalities and culture industry leaders have signed opinion pieces that appeared in the French press this week calling on undecided voters to throw their support behind the incumbent president Emmanuel Macron as he gears up to face the run-off poll against Marine Le Pen on 24 April.
Some 50 sports personalities in France signed an opinion piece published on Tuesday in Le Parisien daily newspaper calling on people to block the far-right candidate, and vote for Emmanuel Macron.
Among the signatories were judo star Clarisse Agbégnénou, handballer Nikola Karabatic, former basketball player Tony Parker, former champion swimmer Laure Manaudou and former tennisman Yannick Noah.
"While we are well aware of the difficulties French people face at the present time, we are convinced that the vote for a party that puts Republican values in danger would be the worst solution," they wrote.
Marine Le Pen, leader of the far-right National Rally party came in at 23.15 percent of the votes after Sunday's first round, behind Emmanuel Macron who polled at 27.85 percent.
Olympic values
"The kind of sport we believe in is one of Olympic values, it's based on friendship and respect, it is the place for a mixed society. It refuses all discrimination," it reads.
"In these uncertain times, sport is a way to bring people together...It's because of our belief in sport, the one that is fraternal and inclusive, that we are determined to avoid having a president who stands for the exact opposite - stigmatisation, self-reliance and nationalism".
Tackling abstention
Meanwhile, a similar message came from around 100 leaders in the culture industry who signed an opinion piece in La Libération newspaper, published online Wednesday.
Over one hundred names appear in the list, including Jack Lang, former culture minister and head of the Arab World Institute in Paris, Olivier Py director of the Avignon festival, Stanislas Nordey director of the Strasbourg national theatre and Eric Ruf from the Comédie Française.
They called on voters to choose Macron in the second round on 24 April, underlining that abstention would only help Le Pen's cause.
"This is not the first time a far-right candidate has gotten through to the second round. However, unlike in 2002 and 2017, this time the probability for Le Pen to win is higher," it reads.
"That's why we will vote on 24 April for Emmanuel Macron and we invite all those who are tempted by abstention to do the same."
World in common
It's not only about the world of art and culture, there's also the art of living together and the culture of a world in common, it added.
"The world that Marine Le Pen wants is one of national preference, discrimination, xenophobia disguised as constitutional principals...a rejection of any form of diversity and hospitality," it concludes.
Both candidates have taken to the campaign trail again, intent on recuperating the large number of voters on the Left side of the spectrum who voted Jean-Luc Mélenchon in the first round.
On Wednesday, Macron held a cabinet meeting, and will be interviewed on TF1 television in the evening, while Le Pen spent time in Asnières-sur-Seine, a working class suburb north of Paris, and will hold an afternoon press conference on the topics of diplomacy and foreign policy.
