Pinefarm
05-07-2007, 07:52 AM
http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2007-05-06-france-elections_N.htm?csp=34
Conservative wins presidency in French vote
By Claudia Sanchez and Jeffrey Stinson, USA TODAY
PARIS Pro-American conservative Nicolas Sarkozy won France's presidential election Sunday after a campaign spent urging the French to change their famously relaxed way of life in return for faster economic growth.
Sarkozy, 52, the son of a Hungarian immigrant, promised to end an economic malaise that has dogged France for years. He defeated Segolene Royal, a socialist who conceded the race minutes after polls closed.
"The French people have chosen change. This change I will put into place," Sarkozy said in his victory speech.
A former interior minister, Sarkozy has pledged a tougher line on immigration and crime as France struggles to integrate its largely Muslim immigrant population. He will replace Jacques Chirac as president May 17. Chirac, 74, will retire after 12 years in office.
Sarkozy's election could help repair ties with Washington, which were strained when Chirac rigorously opposed the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003.
Sarkozy reached out to the United States during his acceptance speech Sunday, saying it could "count on our friendship."
"I want to tell (the United States) that France will always be by their side when they need her," Sarkozy said. "But I want to tell them as well that friendship is accepting that one's friends can act differently."
President Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair called Sarkozy to congratulate him, and German Chancellor Angela Merkel wished him "much luck and success."
Royal, who campaigned on a populist platform in seeking to become France's first female president, urged Sarkozy to reach out to her supporters.
Despite his victory, Sarkozy could face problems turning France around. French voters crave a more dynamic economy but may be hesitant to make the personal sacrifices such as working more than 35 hours a week Sarkozy says are necessary to improve productivity and generate more jobs.
"There is a desire for change," says Rachna Uppal, European analyst in London for Global Insight, an international consulting company. Uppal said the French "find it very difficult to make reforms."
France has Europe's second-biggest economy, behind Germany. However, its 2.1% economic growth last year ranked 10th among European nations using the euro currency. Its unemployment rate of 8.8%, as measured by the European Union, is among the highest in Europe. Sarkozy has proposed making overtime pay tax-free and urged tax cuts for businesses to spur economic growth.
"He is the only one who could move France forward," said Sarkozy voter Jean-Baptiste Bissonnet, 23, a business student in Paris.
Sarkozy must have support in parliament if he is to succeed. Though France's president has wide leeway to make foreign policy, his ability to shape domestic policy is limited. Sarkozy's UMP (Union for a Popular Movement) party controls the government, but France will have parliamentary elections June 10 and 17.
Three weeks of youth rioting in the fall of 2005 awakened France to problems of integration among immigrant citizens.
At the time, Sarkozy called the rioters "scum." Royal warned Friday that a Sarkozy victory could trigger new riots. More than 3,000 police were deployed Sunday in Paris and its suburbs to watch for unrest.
Late Sunday, small bands of youths hurled stones and other objects at police at the Place de la Bastille in Paris. Police fired back with tear gas. Two police unions said firebombs targeted schools and recreation centers in towns in the Essonne region just south of Paris.
Nicholas Dungan, president of the French-American Foundation based in New York, said it was important for the United States to have a revitalized France as a partner in foreign and economic policy.
Direct U.S. business investment in France is $60 billion a year more than U.S. companies spend in China and India.
Dungan called Sunday's vote "an important election for Americans."
Conservative wins presidency in French vote
By Claudia Sanchez and Jeffrey Stinson, USA TODAY
PARIS Pro-American conservative Nicolas Sarkozy won France's presidential election Sunday after a campaign spent urging the French to change their famously relaxed way of life in return for faster economic growth.
Sarkozy, 52, the son of a Hungarian immigrant, promised to end an economic malaise that has dogged France for years. He defeated Segolene Royal, a socialist who conceded the race minutes after polls closed.
"The French people have chosen change. This change I will put into place," Sarkozy said in his victory speech.
A former interior minister, Sarkozy has pledged a tougher line on immigration and crime as France struggles to integrate its largely Muslim immigrant population. He will replace Jacques Chirac as president May 17. Chirac, 74, will retire after 12 years in office.
Sarkozy's election could help repair ties with Washington, which were strained when Chirac rigorously opposed the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003.
Sarkozy reached out to the United States during his acceptance speech Sunday, saying it could "count on our friendship."
"I want to tell (the United States) that France will always be by their side when they need her," Sarkozy said. "But I want to tell them as well that friendship is accepting that one's friends can act differently."
President Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair called Sarkozy to congratulate him, and German Chancellor Angela Merkel wished him "much luck and success."
Royal, who campaigned on a populist platform in seeking to become France's first female president, urged Sarkozy to reach out to her supporters.
Despite his victory, Sarkozy could face problems turning France around. French voters crave a more dynamic economy but may be hesitant to make the personal sacrifices such as working more than 35 hours a week Sarkozy says are necessary to improve productivity and generate more jobs.
"There is a desire for change," says Rachna Uppal, European analyst in London for Global Insight, an international consulting company. Uppal said the French "find it very difficult to make reforms."
France has Europe's second-biggest economy, behind Germany. However, its 2.1% economic growth last year ranked 10th among European nations using the euro currency. Its unemployment rate of 8.8%, as measured by the European Union, is among the highest in Europe. Sarkozy has proposed making overtime pay tax-free and urged tax cuts for businesses to spur economic growth.
"He is the only one who could move France forward," said Sarkozy voter Jean-Baptiste Bissonnet, 23, a business student in Paris.
Sarkozy must have support in parliament if he is to succeed. Though France's president has wide leeway to make foreign policy, his ability to shape domestic policy is limited. Sarkozy's UMP (Union for a Popular Movement) party controls the government, but France will have parliamentary elections June 10 and 17.
Three weeks of youth rioting in the fall of 2005 awakened France to problems of integration among immigrant citizens.
At the time, Sarkozy called the rioters "scum." Royal warned Friday that a Sarkozy victory could trigger new riots. More than 3,000 police were deployed Sunday in Paris and its suburbs to watch for unrest.
Late Sunday, small bands of youths hurled stones and other objects at police at the Place de la Bastille in Paris. Police fired back with tear gas. Two police unions said firebombs targeted schools and recreation centers in towns in the Essonne region just south of Paris.
Nicholas Dungan, president of the French-American Foundation based in New York, said it was important for the United States to have a revitalized France as a partner in foreign and economic policy.
Direct U.S. business investment in France is $60 billion a year more than U.S. companies spend in China and India.
Dungan called Sunday's vote "an important election for Americans."