A voter prepares to cast her ballot at a polling station in Lille, northern France, March 15, 2020. Polling stations are open across France on Sunday for the first round of municipal elections after additional measures were recently imposed to curb the spread of the coronavirus. The stations are expected to follow sanitary guidelines recommended by the government and health experts, reported French media, including the regular cleaning of door handles, tables and voting booths. Other measures include avoiding queues, enforcing a safe distance between voters and ensuring priority for the elderly and frail groups. (Xinhua)
PARIS, March 15 (Xinhua) -- Polling stations are open across France on Sunday for the first round of municipal elections after additional measures were recently imposed to curb the spread of the coronavirus.
The stations are expected to follow sanitary guidelines recommended by the government and health experts, reported French media, including the regular cleaning of door handles, tables and voting booths. Other measures include avoiding queues, enforcing a safe distance between voters and ensuring priority for the elderly and frail groups.
Notices at some polling stations called on voters to use their own pens, or throw the pens offered on the spot into the designated bin for recycle after use.
Some 47.7 million voters are expected to head to the polls. Polling stations will close between 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. local time depending on the municipality. Exit results will be announced at 8 p.m.
Holding the municipal elections as scheduled has been controversial in France, especially when the government decided on the eve of the voting to close "all places receiving the public not essential to the life of the country" in a fresh bid to curb the further spread of the coronavirus.
The restrictive measure covers all non-necessary businesses, including shops, restaurants, cinemas, bars and discos. Prime Minister Edouard Philippe had called on the French people to "keep calm" and show "good citizenship" in the local elections to go ahead as scheduled.
From last Monday on, France has closed all nurseries and schools and banned gatherings of over 100 people nationwide.
No decision is yet made on the holding of the second round vote originally scheduled for March 22.
As of Saturday, some 4,500 COVID-19 cases had been confirmed in France, with infections doubled in 72 hours, including 91 deaths and 300 critical cases, half of them under the age of 60, according to health authorities.
