Emmanuel Macron’s centrists are facing a disastrous first-round vote

Home to some 13,000 inhabitants, Châteaudun is as close as France gets to a town that reflects the country. Its outskirts are approached via a drive-in McDonald’s and a “Buffalo Grill” steakhouse; its town centre is a handsome mix of medieval and renaissance architecture. On the main square, with its ornate centrepiece fountain, a Turkish kebab shop nestles between a hairdresser’s and a pharmacy. At the past four presidential elections the town has voted in line with the nation, too. In 2022 58% of the townsfolk backed Mr Macron against Ms Le Pen, almost exactly the score the centrist secured countrywide. Then, at voting for the European Parliament on June 9th, the town swung the other way: 33% supported the RN, just a touch above the national average.