The stakes for France's 2027 election could hardly be higher. For the first time since World War II, a far-right party has a serious chance of taking power in France, the European Union's second-largest economy and its only nuclear power.

Marine Le Pen is positioned to walk away with the coming French presidential election after three previous failed campaigns.

As the 2027 French presidential election campaign gets underway in earnest, polls show Marine Le Pen with a commanding lead - John Lichfield looks at whether a far right victory…