France election: Valls back Macron

France’s former Prime Minister, the socialist Manuel Valls, has said he will vote for Emmanuel Macron in the presidential election. Opinion polls show centrist Macron winning in the second round against far-right leader Marine Le Pen. But Valls backed Macron instead of the official socialist candidate Benoit Hamon, who is set for a first round defeat. DIRECT #Valls “Il est normal qu’on remercie les gens qui veulent voter pour Macron” dit RichardFerrandhttps://t.co/LIEhlp6yN7 pic.twitter.com/HuB7sWR3VV— BFMTV (BFMTV) March 29, 2017 He said: “I think we don’t have to take any risk for the Republic. That’s why I’ll vote for Emmanuel Macron.” Hamon defeated Valls in the party primaries to become the Socialist candidate for the presidential election. Valls said his choice to back Macron did not mean he would campaign behind the 39-year-old – a fellow minister in Francois Hollande’s government from 2014. France votes in the first round of the election on April 23.