French voters in Sunday’s presidential election will use the same system that’s been used for generations: paper ballots that are cast in person and counted by hand. Despite periodic calls for more flexibility or modernization, France doesn’t do mail-in voting, early voting, or use voting machines en masse like the United States. President Emmanuel Macron is the clear front-runner, though an unprecedented proportion of people say they are unsure who they will vote for or whether they will vote at all.

PAPER BALLOTS

Voters must be at least 18 years old. About 48.7 million French are registered on the electoral rolls of the place where they live.

Voters make their choices in a booth, with the curtains closed, then place their ballot in an envelope that is then put into a transparent ballot box. They must show a photo identification and sign a document, next to their name, to complete the process.

Volunteers count the ballots one by one. Officials will then use state-run software to register and report results more efficiently.

But legally only the paper counts. If a result is challenged, the paper ballots are recounted manually.