France's Macron gets backing from Socialist ex-mayor of Paris Delanoe

Emmanuel Macron, head of the political movement En Marche !, or Onwards !, and candidate for the 2017 French presidential election, attends a meeting at the National Assembly in Paris, France, March 8, 2017. REUTERS/Charles Platiau

PARIS (Reuters) - French Socialist Party heavyweight Bertrand Delanoe on Wednesday said he would back centrist Emmanuel Macron's presidential bid to stop far-right leader Marine Le Pen from winning, as the roller-coaster election further shook the political landscape.

In a French election like no other, alongside a series of botched rebellions against conservative candidate Francois Fillon, the other major mainstream party, President Francois Hollande's ailing Socialist Party, is facing its own splits.