A specter haunts Europe, and its name is Trump.  A nightmare looms for the globalist elites, as France looks as though it will follow votes for Brexit in the U.K. and Trump in the United States, rejecting the unlimited flow of foreign nationals and the doctrine of multiculturalism that surrenders national culture.  The U.K. Independent reports that Marine Le Pen, habitually dismissed as “far right,” could become the president of France next spring, if current levels of support continue.

Front National leader Marine Le Pen has taken a sizeable lead over Nicolas Sarkozy in a new French presidential election poll.

The far-right leader had 29 per cent of the vote when pitted against Les Républicains’ former president, who was eight points behind, and held a 15-point lead over the Parti de Gauche’s Jean-Luc Mélenchon in the poll released by Ipsos.

It was one of five scenarios for the first round of France's 2017 presidential elections on 23 April, although one that did not include Les Républicains’ Alain Juppé – who remains strong favourite to succeed Francois Hollande as leader.

While Mr Juppé holds leads of between 4 and 7 per cent in three other scenarios including him, the results are likely to add to growing fears that the rise of global populism could see Ms Le Pen secure a surprise victory in the wake of the UK’s Brexit vote and Donald Trump’s US election win.

Under the French election system, barring the unlikely possibility one candidate gains an overall majority in the first round vote, the two candidates with the most votes will contest a second and decisive round on 7 May.

As Michael Walsh of PJ Media points out, Sarkozy has just about been ruled out as an opponent:

It's offical -- Nicholas Sarkozy is out of the running to regain the office he once held:

Fance's former president Nicolas Sarkozy conceded defeat Sunday in the race to choose the conservative nominee for next year's presidential election. With more than 3.2 million votes counted from about 80 percent of polling stations, former prime minister Francois Fillon had 44 percent, former prime minister Alain Juppe had 28.1 and Sarkozy had 21.1 percent.

The two candidates confirmed as winning the most votes advance to the Nov. 27 runoff.

In a speech from his campaign headquarters in Paris on Sunday, Sarkozy called on his supporters to vote for Fillon in the second round. "I did not succeed in convincing a majority of voters. I do respect and understand the will of those (voters) who have chosen for the future other political leaders than me," Sarkozy said.

The rest of Europe’s leaders (this means you, Frau Merkel) had better wake up.  They have screwed up badly, and their voters don’t.like being held hostage in their own homes by gangs of “youth” who terrify them.  

Rick Moran comments:

It's impossible to overstate the trepidation being felt by Euro-leftists at this point.  A new poll on the presidential race shows National Front's Marine Le Pen leading in a three-way race, and only 3 points behind in the expected four-way battle for the presidency next spring.

Here's the reaction of prominent leftist philosopher Bernard-Henri Lévy:

“If Trump is possible, then everything is possible. Nothing, from now on, is unimaginable,” Mr Lévy told The Telegraph. 

“As for Le Pen it is unlikely that she wins but it is possible, and that is partly because the people have lost interest in policy, instead focusing on personality.

“The people listen less and less to policy and they even seem less concerned about whether the candidates are telling the truth or not.

“They are more interested in the performance, in the theatrical quality of what is said than whether it is true. And as we know, a fascist can put on a very successful performance.”

Gee...the people have lost interest in what the establishment has to say.  Where have we heard that before?