Far-right leader Marine Le Pen will face centrist independent Emmanuel Macron in the May 7 run-off of the 2017 French presidential election.
After securing 21.4 percent of the vote in Sunday’s first round, Le Pen will now proceed to the final round in two weeks time.
But the Front National (NF) leader has courted controversy throughout the campaign with a protectionist, anti-global vision for France.
Who is Marine Le Pen?
Le Pen is a member of a political dynasty stemming back to her father’s role in the founding of the NF.
She would’ve been aware of the controversy surrounding his beliefs from a young age - a bomb exploded near the family’s home in Paris when she was eight.
But a rift between Le Pen and her father opened up as she tried to soften the NF’s image - and in 2013, she expelled him from the party for claiming Nazi gas chambers were merely “a detail of World War II history”.
Aside from politics, the 48-year-old is a twice-divorced mother of three who has sought to shield her own family from the media spotlight.
What are Marine Le Pen’s main manifesto points?
Le Pen has unveiled a 140 point plan for France should she be elected, including policy on the EU, trade, and security.
‘Frexit’
Le Pen will promise a so-called ‘Frexit’ referendum on France’s continued membership of the European Union.
Her manifesto states she will embark upon a six month negotiation with the EU to wrestle back control of trade and legal policy - at the end of which the referendum will be held.
She has said she would ‘take back’ France’s borders and exit the free movement Schengen area.
Smaller government, greater presidential power
She has pledged to severely reduce the size of the French parliament and cut regional governments.
And planned reform of the French constitution would allow her to call binding referenda without consulting parliament.
Tougher on crime
Le Pen has said she would recruit 15,000 more police officers and greatly expand the number of prison places.
She has said she would expel foreign criminals from France and hire more ‘frontier’ police officers to protect France’s borders.
‘Intelligent protectionism’
Le Pen has advocated a new system of ‘intelligent protectionism’ to withdraw France from international trade agreements and re-prioritise domestic production of goods.
She said she would use trade tariffs to make French goods and services more attractive - a policy similarly supported by US president Donald Trump.
Promoting the birth rate
Le Pen has said she intends the state to promote the birth rate among French nationals - reducing the need for foreign born workers.
Meanwhile surrogacy and same-sex marriage will be outlawed.