Pecresse emerges as favourite to win French centre-right's presidential ticket

FILE PHOTO: Paris? Ile-de-France administrative region president Valerie Pecresse arrives for a ceremony as part of commemorations marking the 103rd anniversary of the November 11, 1918 Armistice, ending World War I, at the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, France, November 11, 2021. Ludovic Marin / Pool via Reuters

PARIS (Reuters) - Valerie Pecresse, a moderate conservative who has described herself as '1/3 Thatcher, 2/3 Merkel', will go into a runoff as favourite to be picked as the centre-right Les Republicains' candidate in the French presidential election in April.

Pecresse will face Eric Ciotti, a staunch right-winger, in the runoff. The winner will head the party's bid to return to power for the first time in a decade.