14 days separate French voters from the first round of a presidential election in which three leaders stand out: Ségolène Royal, François Bayrou, and Nicolas Sarkozy. Despite the nine other candidates, it appears that the two spots for the runoff will be contested among representatives of the Socialist Party (PS), the Union for a Popular Movement (UMP), and the Union for French Democracy (UDF).
Polling agencies such as Ipsos-Dell (NS: 31.50%, SR: 23.50%, FB: 19%), IFOP (NS: 29.50%, SR: 22%, FB: 19%), TNS-Sofres (NS: 28%, FB: 26%, SR: 25%), and CSA (NS: 26%, SR: 23.50%, FB: 21%) produce various numbers as much as newsrooms are willing to buy and publish them. Even though the UMP flag-bearer seems to be leading twelve days before the first results, Ségolène Royal and François Bayrou have not yet conceded defeat in a race to the runoff where Parisian forecasters see Nicolas Sarkozy as certain, while the second place is contended between the Socialist Party’s favorite and the UDF’s renewing leader. Then there’s the unknown Jean-Marie Le Pen who, after being ignored by polls and pollsters, surpasses the 15% threshold he has been claiming for weeks.
The final race is well underway, and it would be a clever person indeed who could definitively name the two participants in the second and final round.
Regarding Ségolène Royal, she dreams of achieving the highest possible score. Her schedule in the coming days includes three meetings in Metz and Nantes, with a final rendezvous in Toulouse alongside the Spanish Prime Minister, José Luis Zapatero. Like Jean Jaurès, whom she claims as her heritage, she wants to “defend the value of work”.
Her statement: “It’s important on the left to know where one comes from, because it also helps to envision the future.”
François Bayrou, freshly back from a trip to Corsica with a warm welcome in tow, continues to delight in the campaign figures. The addition of Azouz Begag to his team might be a positive point for the centrist candidate who appeals to both the right and the left. With a real debate demanded before the first round, Bayrou knows there are still many undecided voters, and François Bayrou’s rising popularity might convince some.
His statement: “The President of the Republic is elected by the people, and only the people can censor him!”
Is it a real advantage to be the favorite and first in all polls? Nicolas Sarkozy must sometimes wonder. Criticized by the Archbishop of Paris, Mgr André XXIII, for his statements on pedophilia, the leader must now also contend with the declared enmity of the aforementioned Azouz Begag. In terms of support, Bernadette Chirac attended a meeting with him in Lyon to confirm her husband’s and the President’s backing, while Bernard Tapie readily bets on the Sarkozy-Borloo duo.
His statement: “I’ve been to the districts 209 times.”
