FRANCE’S SOCIALIST Party yesterday taunted Nicolas Sarkozy with accusations he was “losing his sangfroid” after three more opponents joined an expanding field of candidates hoping to unseat the president next year.
Defections from the ruling UMP bloc have strengthened the chances of a split in the right-wing vote in next year’s presidential vote. With Marine Le Pen’s resurgent Front National expanding its support base and Mr Sarkozy’s popularity ratings static at about 30 per cent for more than a year, the president was dealt a further setback this week with the news he will face at least two challengers from within the UMP family.
The centrist former minister Jean-Louis Borloo indicated he would stand, while Mr Sarkozy’s long-time rival Dominique de Villepin moved a step closer to entering the race when he published a manifesto for his new party, République Solidaire. At least two other UMP figures, representing the bloc’s centrist and Christian Democratic camps, are considering whether to stand.
On the left, environmentalist TV presenter Nicholas Hulot this week also entered the race, while speculation is rife that Dominique Strauss-Kahn – the man who polls suggest is best placed to defeat Mr Sarkozy – will step down from his post as managing director of the International Monetary Fund next month to take part in the Socialist Party’s primary.
At a meeting of his party’s deputies on Wednesday, according to several leaks, Mr Sarkozy joked about a recent decline in Mr Strauss-Kahn’s popularity, terming his popularity “phoney”.
He reportedly mocked socialist leader Martine Aubry’s positive media image, sarcastically praising her as “open, modest and nice”. Reacting to the reports of Mr Sarkozy’s remarks, senior socialist Jean-Christophe Cambadélis said it showed the president was “losing his sangfroid” and must be “trembling in his palace”. Mr Cambadélis, an ally of Mr Strauss-Kahn, said Mr Sarkozy was clearly “furious” about his consistently low popularity ratings.
Former Socialist Party leader François Hollande, who declared this month, is the main beneficiary of Mr Strauss-Kahn’s decline in popularity. The latter’s camp said he would announce his decision before June 28th, when nominations open for the party primary.
Europe Écologie, which has emerged as the second largest left-wing bloc in France, may face a selection convention after this week’s decision by Mr Hulot – the face of a long-running nature series – to seek a nomination. To win Europe Écologie’s backing, he will have to overcome a challenge from the former anti-corruption judge, Eva Joly.
Mr Sarkozy’s greatest concerns lie on the right, however. The defection of Mr Borloo, the second most senior member of government until his resignation last November, came despite persistent attempts by the president to placate him. It confirms the government’s swing to the right in recent months – emphasising crime and immigration in an attempt to stem the flow of support to Front National – threatens to erode the UMP’s middle ground. Two more centrists, Hervé Morin and François Bayrou, are considering a run for the presidency, as is Christine Boutin, a social conservative.
Mr de Villepin, having already broken with the UMP, is expected to declare next month. Poorly funded and lacking a strong support base, he is not given a serious chance of winning, but the rise of Ms Le Pen means even a small split on the mainstream right could severely damage Mr Sarkozy’s chances.
For now, the president projects calm. “I feel good”, he told UMP deputies this week, according to Agence France Presse. “The cemeteries are full of people who had a presidential project.”