According to the survey carried out by Ifop for the Sud Radio and Paris Match magazine, independent candidate Emmanuel Macron also lost 0.5 percentage point and is projected to come in second with 24 percent of votes. The Republicans party’s Francois Fillon has on the contrary improved his result by 0.5 percent and now has 20.5 percent.
Le Pen is projected to lose to Macron in the second round, with 28 percent to 62 percent.
The poll was conducted between February 24 and 28 among 1,398 registered voters.
The first round of the French presidential election is scheduled for April 23, while the run-off is slated for May 7.