Socialist Francois Hollande has been elected as France’s new president, early estimates say.
He got about 52% of votes in Sunday’s run-off, according to projections based on partial results, against 48% for centre-right incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy.
Mr Hollande would be the first French socialist president since 1995.
Analysts say the vote has wide implications for the whole eurozone. Mr Hollande has vowed to rework a deal on government debt in member countries.
The estimates were carried by French media after all polling stations closed at 20:00 (18:00 GMT).
Exuberant Hollande supporters have already converged on Place de la Bastille in Paris – a traditional rallying point of the Left – to celebrate.
Mr Hollande capitalised on France’s economic woes and President Sarkozy’s unpopularity.
The socialist candidate has promised to raise taxes on big corporations and people earning more than 1m euros a year.
He also wants to raise the minimum wage, hire 60,000 more teachers and lower the retirement age from 62 to 60 for some workers.
Mr Sarkozy, who has been in office since 2007, had promised to reduce France’s large budget deficit through budget cuts.
It is only the second time an incumbent president fails to win re-election since the start of France Fifth Republic in 1958.
The last was Valery Giscard d’Estaing – he was beaten in 1981 by socialist Francois Mitterrand, who had two terms in office until 1995.
The new president is expected to be inaugurated later this month.
A parliamentary election is due in June.
(Source: BBC)
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10 Responses
The big difference is that this will move the EU to the left, which is good if you want to “short” the Euro. While a left wing shift in a major ally might slightly start some “mo” for Obama, the economic ramifications will help Romney if they have an effect before our election. The French socialists favor the same irresponsible policies as the American democrats.
Is this good for the Jews or bad for the Jews?
Goodbye France, you mean. Sarkozy was no great shakes as a president, but compared to what’s coming his term will seem like a model of rationality and good government. People will long for the days of Sarkozy.
This is very bad for jews. I can tell you, I am french!
I really don’t know why frummelach should be so upset. Anyone knows that in European countries a person can never get elected if he isn’t loyal first to the medinah of the Tzionimlach. You’ll see one of his first actions will have something to do with supporting Netanyahu. That’s how it works especially in Washington, Ottawa, London, Paris and Berlin.
Harper and Cameron are 100% devoted, as is Merkel, who just sold a FOURTH submarine to the medinah at a DISCOUNT price. Sarkozy was also. And Obama, well, let’s say he has to suffer for only being 98% loyal when signing the 3 billion dollars a year checks. The expectation of course is that Romney is at least 100% loyal to the medinah.
To No. 2
How parochial and insular can you get? This election will have massive impacts on the global economy and geopolitics and you are worried about how this will effect yidden? Worry about whether France will seek to cut back on its austerity committments to the EU and further reduce its NATO forces.
Look at it this way Nicolas -anti semite- Sarkozy,you don’t have to deal with Netanyahu and Israel anymore. Hopefully, your pal here in Washington DC who you were lamenting to about Bibi will follow you off into the sunset come November.
So now more Jews in Europe and especially France will be moving to Eretz Yisroel as a safe haven.
In hindsight, Sarkozy should have framed Hollande as well as DSK.
#6, Excuse me? What’s wrong with parochialism? Shouldn’t we be concerned first and above all about our own people?
Beside which, the whole world only exists because of the yidden — אפילו ספינות הבאות מגליא לאספמיא אינן מתברכות אלא בשביל ישראל. So shouldn’t that be everyone’s first concern, Jewish or not?