Far-right leader Le Pen kicks off presidency tilt in wake of France protests

ORLEANS, France (AFP) — Marine Le Pen, France’s far-right candidate to succeed President Emmanuel Macron in elections in six months, was to give her first campaign speech on Sunday, a day after protests sweeping the country again flared into violence.

Le Pen — the frontrunner according to surveys — is seen to be benefiting in the polls from the convulsions France has been going through for weeks, punctuated by mass rallies and violent clashes on Saturday and a week earlier.

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More than 400,000 people marched in major French cities on Saturday to protest against the rising cost of living, with clashes erupting after groups of masked protesters broke away from the demonstrations.