France readying itself for next week's parliamentary polls
French voters will elect a new parliament next week, with the latest polls indicating that Nicolas Sarkozy's UMP party will strengthen its parliamentary grip in a landslide election.
The first round of voting was held on Sunday and attracted a voter turnout of 61%, with the UMP party winning 39.6% of the vote and the Socialists on 24.7%.
If these results are reflected in the decisive second-round poll next week, Mr Sarkozy can expect a substantial majority in the parliament with which he can dictate the legislature for the coming term .
Speaking after Sunday's first round vote, French prime minister Francois Fillon was quoted by BBC News as saying: " Today you have chosen to give the presidential majority a beautiful lead... Tonight we have gone some of the way. But everything will really be decided next Sunday."
However, Segolene Royal, the defeated Socialist presidential candidate, has urged her supporters not to give up and vote to give the French parliament greater balance.
In related news, a Belgian television station has apologised to Mr Sarkozy for suggesting that he was drunk during a news conference at the recent G8 summit.
< Back to latest news