France opts for left-right battle

[Theobald]

France opts for left-right battle

Centre-right Nicolas Sarkozy will meet Socialist Segolene Royal in the run-off of France's presidential election on 6 May, according to initial results.


Mr Sarkozy, a former interior minister, came first with 30%, ahead of Ms Royal, who is bidding to be France's first woman president, on 24%.

Centrist Francois Bayrou got 18.2%, and far-right Jean-Marie Le Pen 11.5%.

Voting throughout the day reached record numbers, with turnout put at 84% - the highest for nearly 50 years.
On a bright spring day, disillusionment with politicians and their promises did not translate into apathy, reports the BBC's Caroline Wyatt in Paris.


Instead, young and old alike queued at the polling booths at schools and town halls, although in their choices they remained as divided as ever.

Voters turned out in such high numbers that the authorities decided to allow more time for people who were still queueing.

Of the main candidates, Mr Sarkozy promised a "rupture" with the past and real economic reform, while Ms Royal has pledged a fairer society.

Both are controversial figures who have divided the French.
Mr Sarkozy is hated by the left as a reformer who many fear would change the French way of life by making the nation work harder and longer and by cutting back on its generous welfare state.


Ms Royal is also regarded with suspicion, seen as too authoritarian and conservative by some Socialists.

Addressing a cheering crowd at his election headquarters, Mr Sarkozy said France had chosen to have a real debate between two different types of politics.

"The debate should be a real debate of ideas," he said.

He went on to appeal to all voters, saying: "I invite all French people, whatever their origin, whatever their beliefs, whatever their party to unite with me."

The results were a victory for the Socialist Party and also a personal victory for Segolene Royal, one of her advisers, Jack Lang, said.

"The French people have discovered a cool-headed and serene personality who tomorrow can be a president who will hold the reins of the state. I am calling for a broad coalition against the representative of the outgoing government, " he said.

Centre ground

The centrist Francois Bayrou, who said he would bring together left and right in a government of national unity, failed to capitalise on early hopes.
But Mr Sarkozy and Ms Royal will be bidding to win over for the political centre that he energised well enough to turn the election briefly into a three-way race.


It was a disappointing result for 78-year-old Mr Le Pen, who had confidently predicted that he would win through to the second round as he did in 2002 also failed to materialise.

The far-right leader has, however, has seen many of his ideas on patriotism and immigration filter into the mainstream campaigns.
Whoever finally wins the presidency, says the BBC's diplomatic correspondent Jonathan Marcus, it will mark a change of political generation and perhaps a shift in French international priorities, making this election matter even to those outside France.

[Theobald]

Estimations :

N. Sarkozy (UMP - centre-right/right) 30%
S. Royal (PS - socialist) 25%
F. Bayrou (UDF - centrist) 18.5%
J.-M. Le Pen (FN - far-right) 11.5%
O. Besancenot (LCR - trotskist) 4.5%
P. De Villiers (MPF - right/far-right) 2.5%
M.-G. Buffet (PCF - communist) 2%
D. Voynet (Les Verts - ecologist) 1.5%
A. Laguiller (LO - trotskist) 1.5%
F. Nihous (CPNT - others) 1.5%
J. Bové (- - altermondialist) 1%
G. Schivardi (PT - trotskist) 0.5%


Which makes :

- Far-right : 14%
- "Moderate" right : 30%
- Centre : 18.5%
- "Moderate" left : 26.5%
- Far-left : 9.5%

(others : CPNT - 1.5%)

[Theobald]

Now don't tell me about those f*****' elections during one week, please.

[svin]

I wonder if the results of the 1st round could be any worse? Awful...

[Errigal]

One thing that can be said in favour of Nicolas Sarkozy when compared to other friends of the neocons (Tony Blair, George Bush, Angela Merkel) is that he may not be as much of a puppet as the others. He has spent years in politics at a high level compared to Bush, Merkel and Blair who seem to have come from almost nowhere before they got the top job. Almost in the style of the Manchurian Candidate.

[Kernunnos]

When a centrist entersthe fray many good votes are dispersed into nothing.

Anyway it is true that Le Pen has influenced the right, Sarkozi's tough language against insurgents, la racaille, is a lepenism.

And after five years since 2002 many elder voters have died, being replaced by young people who can not remember the ordered france of yore, so many potential young lepenists are attracted by the more conformist Sarkozi, the fake right winger.

They have grown in a leftist society so the anathema against the real right is still ingrained in their minds.

[Cirrus]

Well, that's sad, but France is dead. Like I said before, localism is now the only solution for us.

[Errigal]

Originally Posted by Salaün

Well, that's sad, but France is dead. Like I said before, localism is now the only solution for us.

You should go see American cities like Detroit or Los Angeles before you say France is dead. Compared to so many parts of the world France is in near perfect condition. It is far too early to give up on any European state. If France can survive and thrive after the First World War, the Black Death and the Wars of Religion I think it can make it through the current crisis.

[Cirrus]

Of course, it's not completely lost, but many people (and French Nationalists) thought that the FN was the solution. We can see it's wasn't.

[Carnyx]

Elections are not a solution to begin with, for "Democracy" is biased.

[Cirrus]

The only good thing in this election is that if Sarközy is elected, there will be new riots in the Banlieues. Perhaps then, people will understand... or not.

Anyway, I still think that France has no future.

[Errigal]

Originally Posted by Salaün

Anyway, I still think that France has no future.

Like the rest of us, France has a future whether it wants one or not.

[Theobald]

Why did Le Pen lose 2 million votes ?

Sarkozy's electoral project :

Originally Posted by Nicolas Sarkozy

15 points :
(...)

12 : Security

For 25 years we have spent billions and billions euros in ghettos, but their situation did not improve in any way.
(...)
We shall first restore the Republican law in these districts, and stop the gangs' law. Various traffics, Omerta, fear, religious extremism shall disappear there.
(...)
We shall then control immigration.
(...)
We shall finally restore work. I will not let any young people without an activity.

(...)
13 : Immigration

For years we were not allowed to talk about immigration in our country. Those who did not accept an unrestricted immigration were immediately "extremist" and "racist". But immigration problems are rather part of our future than part of our past. We need a controlled immigration.
(...)
I will ask people who want to live in France to learn French first and to respect our culture and our values.
(...)
Finally I want to create a Minister of Immigration and National Identity.

(...)

15 : Proud to be French

It's the worst of our renouncements that we ceased being proud to be French. Our pride is the identity of our Nation. Our national ideal, shared with a common ambition and a common faith, is : being a great country, united by our common values (...) If I win these elections, I will not cease affirming our pride to be French.
(...)
Our pride is our language and our culture, immense. I will defend the French language, a great thing for the world, and the influence of our culture in the world.

Various Sarkozy's comments :

Originally Posted by Nicolas Sarkozy

"One is born a pedophile, and it is actually a problem that we do not know how to cure this disease."

"We shall clean this area out with a Karcher."

"We shall get rid of the racaille (scum)."

Sarkozy's speech today (I was astonished) :

Originally Posted by Nicolas Sarkozy

My dear compatriots, I have one single wish : I want to gather the French Nation around a new French dream.
(...)
I want to speak to those whom nobody talked with anymore, I want to speak to these French who give a lot but who never receive anything.
(...)
I want to tell the French who are afraid, afraid of the future, who feel fragile, vulnerable, I want to tell them that I want to protect them from violence, deliquency, immigration, delocalizations, exclusion.
To people life has broken, to the victims of life, to those who are sick, to handiccaped people, to those who have already suffered too much, I want to give them a hope, I want to give everyone a hope, I want to tell them that the French Nation is a family.

He speaks like Le Pen, behaves like Le Pen, steals ideas from Le Pen. But is more popular, mediatized, powerful than Le Pen. That's about it.

[Cirrus]

Originally Posted by Theobald

He speaks like Le Pen, behaves like Le Pen, steals ideas from Le Pen. But is more popular, mediatized, powerful than Le Pen. That's about it.

Perhaps also because of the new registered voters (mostly "New French" people from the Banlieues) :

[Theobald]

Originally Posted by Salaün

Perhaps also because of the new registered voters (mostly "New French" people from the Banlieues) :

No, other parties got more voters because of these "new French" but there Le Pen did not only fall down from 17-18% to 11-12%, he also lost 1,5-2 million voters. One cannot lose voters (in absolute numbers) because of new registered voters, that's mathematical.

[Carnyx]

It has no future anymore because it is now dead. And by the way, it's time for some to land, there's not even a future for Bretons or any other people in the French space. It's over unless there's an hypotetical "revival" occuring soon. That will never occur anyway, people are selfish cowards whose poor life has no higher meaning than eating and getting laid.

The riots never stopped in the banlieues. "Incidents" take place on a daily basis here and there. More than 100 cars burn each day. And people still don't understand. They won't ever understand. If they didn't after the late '05 events and the most recent Gare du Nord train station fights, why the hell would they after another dozen more riots?... They seem to be quite all right with all that shit. Perhaps they are masochists; who knows?

I won't vote in May the 5th. But better Ségolène than Sarkozy. The best thing to do now is to pray for this system fell down, and the faster the better. Time is the enemy. Forget about the ballots.

Fuck them all, bunch of losers. Vae Victis!