French set to usher in new era, but which one?
They head to polls Sunday in the first round of a historic presidential election.
from the April 20, 2007 edition
Page 3 of 3
In Parisian cafes, intense debates are under way about whether to vote for Bayrou or Royal to face Sarkozy on May 6. Uncertainty over France's political choice creates its own drama. Royal's bid to create a new "participatory politics" has foundered somewhat. Sarkozy's negatives may run as high as his positives; a cover piece in the liberal weekly magazine Marianne describing him as rage-prone and autocratic sold 300,000 copies this week; a 60,000 reprint sold out and a second reprint is under way.
"The election started as a question about who is best capable of personifying the change of era that France is in," says Pierre Haski, cofounder of "Rue 89," a news website going online May 6. "Everyone was condemning the old, unresponsive politics.... Bayrou captured that mood, but then failed to convince. So the first round is ending with a mood of disenchantment and a fear that there won't be a real break with the past."
In the end, the elections may be decided by a silent majority of ordinary conservative French outside Paris who will opt for a tough character unafraid to knock heads and engineer change. In 2002, the runoff was between conservative Chirac and ultraconservative Jean-Marie Le Pen. Few experts see Mr. Le Pen, the fourth man in the race, repeating. But the sentiment may prevail.
No hanging chads in France
France has 44.5 million voters, with 535,000 of them overseas. At polling stations near their residence, voters are presented with standardized opaque envelopes. They then choose bulletins de vote – slips of paper with one of the 12 candidates' names printed. One may choose all 12 or just one bulletin. For privacy, many take several.
In a curtained booth, voters put their candidate's slip in the envelope and fold the flap: No writing, no punching, no hanging chads.
As they exit, an election official reexamines voter IDs. Voters then sign a huge registry and line up at a transparent voting box. An official speaks the voter's name, then slides open a slot on the box. The voter drops the envelope. The official says, "A voté." ("Has voted.") Et voilà!
Results are expected around 10 p.m. Sunday (5 p.m. EST).
RSS feed
