French presidential election
Socialist Francois Hollande and conservative President Nicolas Sarkozy are heading for a run-off in the race for France's presidency, according to partial official results after a first round of voting.
Socialist Francois Hollande and conservative President Nicolas Sarkozy are heading for a run-off in the race for France's presidency, according to partial official results after a first round of voting.
The frontrunner in the French presidential elections Francois Hollande has slammed President Nicolas Sarkozy at a campaign rally in Quimper, western France.
Mr Hollande told supporters: "The outgoing candidate, he always succeeds in convincing himself, through others. It reassures him. He does it by himself. And yesterday, he tried to make out what was a failure, to be a success.
"He was happy. He is like that. He also thinks his term was a success. More than 73 percent of the French think the opposite. But he continues to think that he must go on."
The first round of the French presidential election produced a clear winner. And it wasn’t the man who came first.
Uncertainty in Holland and France has rocked the DOW Jones and the FTSE
One can argue about the value of polls, but there is no doubt they give us some interesting insights into the political story of the moment