TIMES ONLINE: President Sarkozy’s prospects of a second term looked shakier yesterday after voters showed their distaste for his leadership by routing his party in the first round of elections for regional councils.
The Union for a Popular Movement, the machine that Mr Sarkozy built for his election in 2007, won 26 per cent, the lowest vote for a centre-right party in half a century.
The Socialist party won half the total vote along with its allies, notably the resurgent Greens, who took more than 12 per cent. The National Front of Jean-Marie Le Pen also enjoyed a return to favour with nearly 12 per cent.
The result was seen as repudiation of the policies and style of the President, who has been wallowing in disapproval since 2008. Mr Sarkozy, 55, seems to have turned from an asset to a liability for his party, UMP insiders say.
Dissatisfaction is fuelled by antipathy for the way that he imposed a personal stamp on the presidency, casting himself as saviour of the nation and showing off his private life and his glamorous circle of friends.
Many right-wing voters who backed Mr Sarkozy in 2007 joined the 53 per cent who abstained or backed Mr Le Pen’s group on Sunday.
If the debacle is confirmed in the March 21 run-off, Mr Sarkozy could face a challenge from within the UMP for the presidency. The campaign for the election in April 2012 begins next year. >>> Charles Bremner, Paris | Tuesday, March 16, 2010
