Why so many French are not voting for the presidential election?

A few months ago in a far away South East Asia city, I met a French countryman in a jazz club. While talking he admitted he was disgusted with the upcoming French presidential election and the candidates lack of political charisma. I answered that I wasn’t going to vote. Him : “Why? Are you not interested in it?”. I : “Of course I am, that’s why I’m not gonna vote!”. Unsurprisingly on April 10, 12 824 169 French or 26,31% of the vote cast were abstainers. The second score just behind Emmanuel Macron 27,85 %, that an hypothetical candidate, an invisible man, could have reached. But don’t get fooled by numbers! This percentage is calculated upon the vote cast. When you add up the abstentions and the blank ballot, Macron score only amounts to 20,07 of the registered voters while the ‘invisible candidate’ score is 27,43%. This abstention trend was already apparent in the 2017 election.
How did France get there? First, the plenty of candidates has scattered the votes and has been ineffective in turning voters away from abstention. Do we really need twelve uninspired and uninspiring candidates? Not to mention that it costs the taxpayer lots of money! Instead of reinstating the seven year term, the two finalists should think about transforming the runners selection process and the electoral campaign funding.
Another noticeable trend already there in 2017 is the rise of populist vote. Added together the 3 populist candidates (Marine Le Pen, Jean-Luc Melenchon and Eric Zemmour) have obtained 37,61% of the vote cast. Their main common points : a decrease in taxes and some freedom restricting measures that have seduced a large part of the voters. For lack of achievable economic program, the voters turn to the candidates who promise to alleviate their economic burden, and to do so immediately and drastically.
Marine Le Pen has almost managed to get rid of his father nefarious reputation and markets herself as a motherly loving figure. On her program cover, her family name is obliterated. She promises to lower taxes while French public debt has risen to 2.834,3 billions of euros (almost 120% of the GDP) and the state debt alone amounts to 2 231,5 billions of euros. Will she convince the audience in tonight debate to trust her?
The trust factor is also pivotal in Macron printed program where the formula ‘by trusting me’ is repeated no less than nine times at the beginning of each pledge. The problem is that he cruelly lacks of arguments to back it up. His management of the covid-19 global crisis has been calamitous. The country was confronted to a mask shortage nobody has forgotten about. The economy has been asphyxiated by the numerous lockdowns that left the state finances drained. So why trust him after that? Not only was he ineffective but he now wants to reinstate dirigisme in the economy. Of course the name was not pronounced but it is indeed what his planned state investment in some selected industrial sectors is all about.
Besides that both candidates promises are unachievable and/or undesirable, the winner has still to be backed by a parliamentary majority which may be difficult to obtain to govern.