Sarkozy bows out of French Prez race, 2 ex-PMs in runoff

Paris, November 21 

France’s first Republican presidential primary has ended in a surprising runoff between two former Prime Ministers and halted a political comeback by former President Nicolas Sarkozy.

After coming third (with 20 per cent of votes), Sarkozy, 61, admitted defeat and endorsed former Prime Minister Francois Fillon, 62, a moderate who finished first in Sunday’s first round, according to near-complete results, the BBC reported.

Fillon served as Sarkozy’s Prime Minister during the latter’s presidency between 2007 and 2012. Fillon, who has said he will cut public sector jobs and rein in government spending, won 44 per cent of votes in Sunday’s first-round of voting for the centre-right’s nomination. He faces a second-round vote against another former Prime Minister, Alain Juppe, who trailed him by 15 percentage points. The winner will compete in the 2017 presidential election.

The outcome adds to uncertainty about the result of next year’s presidential election, likely to be decided in a runoff in May. It could increase a still remote risk that the anti-immigration, eurosceptic National Front leader Le Pen can win it, although there is no clear evidence Fillon would fare worse against her than Juppe. 

The surprisingly big lead hands Fillon a strong advantage in next Sunday’s runoff. 

The surprisingly big lead hands Fillon, 62, a strong advantage in next Sunday’s runoff. An admirer of late British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, he is probably the closest thing France has to an economic liberal and social conservative. 

Although Fillon’s triumph on Sunday was a surprise, opinion pollsters had said he made a late surge in campaigning, and several stalwarts from the conservative Les Republicains party threw their weight behind him after his first-round success. “I will vote for Francois Fillon because it is he who will best defend the values of the right,” said party president Laurent Wauquiez, a close Sarkozy ally. 

A snap poll by Opinionway after Sunday’s results showed Fillon winning the head-to-head contest against Juppe with 56 per cent of support. — Agencies