Sarkozy announces return to politics. France's Nicolas Sarkozy: 'Bling' and legal woes. Sarkozy under investigation. France country profile. Image source, Reuters. Mr Sarkozy had been under pressure to win big.
Divisive figure. Related Topics. He banked on a hard-right agenda, sailing close to the policies of far-right leader Marine Le Pen on issues like security, immigration and French identity. Whether it is his policies that have apparently alienated France, his previous record as president, or the scandals that have dogged him since he left, Mr Sarkozy is out of next year's presidential race before it has truly begun.
With approval ratings for France's Socialist president at historic lows, this primary contest is seen by some as an unofficial first round in France's presidential election, as whoever wins the centre-right nomination is expected to battle far-right leader Marine Le Pen in the run-off for the Elysee Palace next year.
Mr Fillon, an anglophile whose wife is Welsh and who admires Margaret Thatcher, said the result showed a strong movement of hope was under way. He had promised deep market reforms and was initially not seen as the top contender. However he has enjoyed a late surge in polls. Francois Fillon's rival in the run-off was regarded as the frontrunner for most of the primary race.
A year-old former prime minister with a technocratic image, Alain Juppe had campaigned as a moderate and a unifying figure in the aftermath of jihadist attacks. He is embroiled in a high-profile scandal over the breach of campaign spending limits in the election.
In September a judge ruled that Mr Sarkozy should stand trial in the case. Turnout in the primary first round was higher than anticipated, with almost four million people taking part.
Le Pen stalks French centre-right contest. Le Pen says Trump win boosts her chances. The legal ceiling for campaign funds was a well-known fact within Sarkozy's campaign team. On March 7, , they received their first memo from their accountants warning them of the quickly expanding campaign cost, urging them to "correct the trajectory," said Guillaume Lambert, Sarkozy's campaign manager, in an interview with France 2 television earlier this year.
Lambert said he told Sarkozy about the memo and indicated to him the necessity to cut campaign spending, while Sarkozy maintained that he had no knowledge of the overspending. Sarkozy's legal woes are not over yet as French prosecutors are looking into alleged illegal campaign funding from Libya.
Libya's former leader, the late Moammar Gadhafi, allegedly provided Sarkozy's campaign with millions of euros shipped to Paris in suitcases.
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