In French election, a cowboy and a swan

The top two candidates have captured the public's imagination, and are nearly tied in polls with two months to go.

from the February 15, 2007 edition

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Sarkozy, for his part, has racked up a series of incidents that have raised eyebrows, though not yet hurt him in the polls. He used French intelligence to investigate Royal's adviser Bruno Rebelle, for example. As head of the police he ordered top detectives last month to recover his son's stolen motor scooter and perform DNA tests to capture the thief.

"One of these two candidates is going to have to inspire enough people to hope," says an American diplomat, "or the anger, frustration, and disappointment will lead to a protest vote for a politician like Le Pen. It is difficult to realize from the outside how fed up the French are."

The word on the street in Paris

'What [Ségolène] says about pensions, about helping the elderly and handicapped people, is interesting. But can she do what she says?

'I don't want Sarkozy because his social program is poor. There are towers in Nanterre [a Paris suburb] for lower-income people. Did you see towers in Neuilly, where Sarkozy was the mayor? No.... I am not satisfied by the current situation, and ... I think the Socialists could change things.' – Paule, retired nurse

'We need a man who will bring some discipline and who can run things by cutting through our bureaucracy. I'm for Le Pen. I'll never vote for Ségolène.' – Stéphan, real estate agent

'I was really disappointed by Ségolène's [Feb. 11] speech. Her program is not truly leftist.

'So far, the campaign has been pathetic. There is no debate about the real social issues. The average French guy can't really know the candidates.

'I don't know who I am going to vote for. Maybe José Bové or [Communist Revolutionary League] Olivier Besancenot, at least they have some serious ideas.' – Jean-Denis Laffont, young social worker

'The Socialist Party is abandoning its traditional voters. They are now looking for Sarkozy and Le Pen's voters.' – Tristan, music school clerk

'Sarkozy is the only one who really knows what he is doing. He has experience and he's smart.' – François, graduate student in management

'The campaign is not really persuasive. We only hear about Sarkozy and Ségolène ... The whole campaign is based on money, on monetary benefits for us. But how will they finance everything?' – Béatrice Roulon, mother of three

'I may vote for [centrist candidate François] Bayrou, as an alternative.' – Pierre Ruiz, head accountant at large firm

'I have had French citizenship for two years now so it is the first time I am going to vote. So far, I don't know who I am going to vote for.

'Sarkozy has a solution for everything it seems like. But Ségolène has good proposals as well, so why not?' – Julien, hotel receptionist of Kurdish origin

 

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