The decision Tuesday by France’s constitutional watch-dog striking down a pending law criminalizing the denial of the Armenian genocide by Ottoman Turks produced reactions one might have anticipated: applause from Turkey, …
presidency
The Anti-Sarkozy: How French Socialist Presidential Candidate François Hollande Would Lead
The Socialist front runner in France’s current presidential campaign promises big changes if he wins elections a bit over two months away. Yet not only does François Hollande remain rather vague about just how he’d do things …
Why Did Merkel Endorse Sarkozy’s French Presidential Re-Election Bid?
How odd is this picture? The leader of one country visits the head of state of a neighboring nation to explicitly support the host’s uphill re-election plans — despite the political and diplomatic problems that may arise if …
Sarkozy Considers Withdrawal from Afghanistan After Death of French Soldiers
Is the outraged French response to the shooting death of four of its forces in Afghanistan by a suspected Afghan soldier Friday a sign that Paris may speed the pull out of its troops from the NATO-led operation? Or is the …
Sarkozy Hopes To Lift Grim Re-Election Odds with Unexpected Reform Drive
For readers following the up-hill re-election efforts ofFrench President Nicolas Sarkozy, I’d like to point out a couple of good pieces on the “social summit” the Elysée is hosting Wednesday in its attempts to push through …
As France Gets Downgraded, Sarkozy’s Re-Election Chances Get Slimmer
To get an idea about the state of France’s looming presidential election, think of it as something like the American situation in reverse—especially in the all-important “likeability” factor. In France, the incumbent is …
Soccer Legend Eric Cantona’s New Goal? The French Presidency
During his varied and fruitful life, Frenchman Eric Cantona has been a soccer hero, ad man, philosopher, kung-fu enthusiast, actor and musician, living legend, and even a king. Were that not enough, the 45 year-old Cantona is …
Dominique de Villepin Enters Stage Right and Adds to Sarkozy’s Woes
French President Nicolas Sarkozy has yet to officially declare his imminent re-election campaign, but that hasn’t kept a teeming field of rivals from launching their own bids for the Elysée. That pack of presidential hopefuls …
Recommended Reading: BBC’s Hewitt On The Sarko-Hollande Battle
For anyone who hasn’t done so yet, I suggest having a read of a very well-focused and evenly-argued story by Gavin Hewitt, Europe editor for BBC News, on the opportunities and challenges for power-seeking European leftist parties at the very moment when French Socialist candidate François Hollande looks like a decent bet to unseat …
François Hollande, France’s Anti-Sarkozy Presidential Candidate
For many people outside France, François Hollande is the man—or the name, at least—they’ve heard will be leading the French left’s effort to oust conservative President Nicolas Sarkozy in general elections next spring. But for many people beyond France, that’s all they know about Hollande–apart perhaps from the supposedly …
Hollande Wins French Socialist Primary, Looks to the Battle Ahead with Sarkozy
Though it may seem cliché to say so, it’s nevertheless true that with his party’s 2012 presidential nomination now secured, the hard work for French Socialist candidate François Hollande is about to begin. With the first round of presidential polling a bit more than six months away, the popular Hollande now becomes the …
New French Poll, Same Result: Marine Le Pen Leads All Presidential Rivals
After the controversy of the first poll comes confirmation in the second. Just 48 hours after a Harris Interactive survey simulating voter intention for the first round of France’s 2012 presidential election found extreme-right leader Marine Le Pen finishing first, a second wave of polling not only reaffirms Le Pen’s domination of …
And The Winner Is…Marine Le Pen
French politicians and pundits were in an tizzy Monday following the publication Sunday of a new poll showing extreme-right leader Marine Le Pen winning the first round of presidential voting were it held now. In it, Le Pen—who took over the presidency of the National Front (FN) party in January from her father, Jean-Marie Le …