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Who should be the next French President?
Nicolas Sarkozy (UMP) 52%  52%  [ 12 ]
Ségolène Royal (Socialist Party) 48%  48%  [ 11 ]
Total votes : 23

jimservo
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22 Apr 2007, 6:47 pm

Quote:
Centre-right candidate Nicolas Sarkozy will face Socialist Segolene Royal in the run-off of France's presidential election on 6 May, results indicate.

With most votes counted in Sunday's first round, Mr Sarkozy had nearly 31%, with Ms Royal, bidding to be France's first woman president, on 25%.

Centrist Francois Bayrou got 18%, and far-right Jean-Marie Le Pen almost 11%.

Voting throughout the day reached record numbers, with turnout put at 85% - the highest for nearly 50 years.


(source=BBC)

The populalist Bayrou did worst then I assume he hoped while, in a good sign, the near or quasi-fascist Le Pen did perhaps worst then expected.



Sopho
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22 Apr 2007, 6:50 pm

Ségolène Royal



skafather84
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22 Apr 2007, 6:53 pm

not familiar with them but from the brief description, i'd say probably sarkozy is probably best.


it's kinda sad that the fascist got 11%.



jimservo
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22 Apr 2007, 6:57 pm

:roll: Lazy me. Hang on as I look for some resources.



jimservo
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22 Apr 2007, 7:23 pm

OK, please forgive me for the lack of extensiveness of these links. I have been following the French elections but I want to keep my links as neutral as I can, and to be honest I really don't remember the articles that I read. These links are from wikipedia, which I don't like to use usually, but these seem to be a healthy mix (including conservative townhall.com and the liberal New Yorker.

For Sarkozy

BBC Profile
An article from Susan Fields of the conservative portal Townhall.com
An effective endorsement by the pro-free-market by anti-George W. Bush Economist
Something from Global Politician, which is a publication I never heard of before
His campaign site is in French. If you want the link here it is. The book he is holding in his hands is on sale in The United States (I browsed through it a little at Barnes and Noble)

For Royal

BBC Profile
Der Spiegel article
New York Times article (IHT is owned by the Times) that heavily harps positively on Royal being a women (this was something not on Wikipedia)
Criticism from "Word Socialist Web Site" that says Royal is "Blairite" and insufficiently socialist.
Translation of excerpt of a book exploring Royal's family background
Interview with Ms. Royal, part I, part II
The NPR Program, All Things Considered, French Socialists Put Woman Forward for President

For both
New Yorker article



Awesomelyglorious
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22 Apr 2007, 10:18 pm

I'd go with Sarkozy. France needs market based reforms to help out its labor market and re-invigorate its economy. Royal doesn't seem to offer the solutions I think France needs.

By the way, an overview of Testimony can be found here the source is right wing though and affiliated with the AEI.



skafather84
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22 Apr 2007, 10:30 pm

still going with sarkozy.



ahayes
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22 Apr 2007, 10:33 pm

I don't care about fRance.



Awesomelyglorious
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22 Apr 2007, 10:42 pm

skafather84 wrote:
it's kinda sad that the fascist got 11%.

Well considering that he was one of the 2 candidates in the runoff election in 2002, it really is not as bad as it could have been. Yes, he really was the 2nd highest candidate one year. Scary, ain't it?



Awesomelyglorious
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22 Apr 2007, 10:47 pm

ahayes wrote:
I don't care about fRance.

Nobody asks you to, however, France is undeniably an important nation in our world for a few reasons. It is also a point of interest for a few reasons as well.



ahayes
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22 Apr 2007, 10:54 pm

Awesomelyglorious wrote:
ahayes wrote:
I don't care about fRance.

Nobody asks you to, however, fRance is undeniably an important nation in our world for a few reasons. It is also a point of interest for a few reasons as well.


hahahahahahahahahaha



Awesomelyglorious
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22 Apr 2007, 10:56 pm

ahayes wrote:
hahahahahahahahahaha

France has nukes and is the 6th largest economy in the world and is a founding member of the EU. Therefore it is important for more than one reason. It is also a point of interest as it provides a vital example of the results of certain policies.



Cyanide
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23 Apr 2007, 12:13 am

I'd vote for Sarkozy, just because he seems more competent, and he's actually willing to do something about immigration. Immigration, in my opinion, is France's largest problem at the moment. One thing I like about Royal though, is that she supports Québec sovereignty/independence.

In the United States election, my biggest issue is going to be about immigration. Whichever candiate (if either) says they'll do something, they have my vote.



Saepius
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23 Apr 2007, 12:32 am

M. Sarkozy is scary. He's even more right wing than M. Chirac. I think Mme Royal is the best person for the job.



headphase
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23 Apr 2007, 3:25 am

I would have liked to see a Le Pen-Besancenot showdown. You know, just for s**ts and giggles.



VesicaPisces
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23 Apr 2007, 5:05 am

Why do you only provide 2 options? What if the choice was neither?


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