Polls opened on Sunday for the first round of the French presidential election.

Polling stations opened at 8 a.m. local time (0600 GMT) and will close at 1800 GMT, when the first exit polls will be published.

The two candidates who garner the most votes in a field of 12 participants will then head to the second and final round of voting on April 24.

(Cover: A worker prepares a polling station at a Saint-Cloud school outside Paris, capital of France, April 8, 2022. /AP)