France is borrowing claims of stolen elections from the U.S. right
On Sunday night, French President Emmanuel Macron (from La République En Marche! party) was reelected for another five-year mandate with a 17-point lead over his far-right competitor, Marine Le Pen (from the National Rally party). Le Pen conceded in a live televised speech shortly after the results were announced. In a near-simultaneous campaign email, she stated that “the ballot boxes have spoken and I respect their decision.”
A growing portion of her base disagrees.
Since early March, the idea that the French presidential election would be “stolen,” “falsified,” or “rigged” has been gaining momentum, particularly among the far right. [...]