President Francois Hollande was one of several key political figures who by midday had already voted in the first nationwide polls since his 2012 election, visibly relaxed despite concern that a drop in turnout by disillusioned Socialist party loyalists will boost the far-right National Front (FN).
Polls have suggested around one in four voters are considering casting their votes for Marine Le Pen's FN, setting the scene for what could be a significant election for the anti-immigration, anti-EU party led by the daughter of its founder Jean-Marie Le Pen.
The vote is also set to be a groundbreaking one for women in the French capital: whatever the final outcome of the two rounds of voting on consecutive Sundays, it is certain that Paris will end up with its first female mayor.
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