Le Pen, Macron Have Equal Chances to Win in 1st Round of French Election - Poll

French independent candidate Emmanuel Macron and National Front party leader Marine Le Pen have equal chances to win in the first round of presidential election, both set to receive 23 percent of votes, a fresh BVA poll showed Saturday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The voting intention figures for Macron dropped by 2 percent, compared to the survey conducted on April 1, while the positions of the far-right nominee weakened by 1 percent.

The chances of The Republicans' party nominee Francois Fillon remained unchanged over the week, amounting to 19 percent.

At the same time, the level of support for leader of left-wing political movement La France Insoumise (Unsubmissive France) Jean-Luc Melenchon increased by 4 percent in a week, also reaching 19 percent.

Meanwhile, the chances of independent candidate Emmanuel Macron to defeat French National Front party leader Marine Le Pen in the second round of the presidential election increased by 1 percent over the week, a BVA poll showed Saturday.

According to the survey, Macron is set to receive 61 percent of votes against Le Pen's 39 percent.

The chances of Socialist candidate Benoit Hamon decreased by 3 percent, amounting now to 8.5 percent.

The first round of presidential election in France is set for April 23, while the run-off vote is scheduled for May 7.