France: 2nd round of presidential elections kicks off amid state of emergency

French voters are heading to the polls to choose France's next president. The presidential runoff between centrist Emmanuel Macron and right-wing Marine Le Pen is the first to take place amid an ongoing state of emergency, introduced in the country after 2015 terrorist attacks.

French authorities have introduced extra security measures for the poll. This time "more than 50,000 policemen, gendarmes will be deployed [across the country] on Sunday", French interior ministry spokesman Pierre-Henry Brandet told AFP on Thursday.

Soldiers from Operation Sentinel will also "ensure security around polling stations and [will be able] to intervene immediately in case of any incident," he added.

Operation Sentinel was launched by the French Army in the aftermath of the Charlie Hebdo attack in January of 2015 and the subsequent Paris strikes.

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