Paris:
France will elect a President tonight for a fresh five year term. Results will be out at 11.30pm India time. Nicolas Sarkozy is trying to hold on to a second term but socialist candidate Francois Hollande has been ahead of him in opinion polls for nearly 8 months now.
Nicolas Sarkozy has however managed to narrow the gap with Francois Hollande from 10 points about a week ago to only 4 points. A clear indication that, this could be a close fight. But there is a strong anti-Sarkozy wave this time in France as opposed to the last elections in 2007, when people thought he could be the dynamic president who could change things for France. But even five years ago, Sarkozy was not really someone people liked. They just felt he could be more efficient as they saw him as a sharp talented politician, with a lot of energy. This time however, many say they are exhausted with what they say, is an aggressive style. The "hyper president" is now facing a serious challenge from Francois Hollande.
Nicolas Sarkozy's 5 year term saw him bring in the Burqa ban which most Muslims living in France did not appreciate. Mr Sarkozy declared there was no room for the burqa in France. A law banning the wearing of full face veils came into force in France in April 2010. Not many Muslim women wear burqas but many felt, the long campaign that led to the passing of the law, stigmatised the Muslim community and stoked Islamophobia.
In 2010 Sarkozy's government said it would dismantle 300 roma camps. Roma people are often called "gypsy" people and many live in impoverished camps or squats in Western Europe, including France. Several roma people come from Bulgaria and Romania to France in the hope for a better life. EU justice commissioner Viviane Reding had called the deportations a "disgrace" and threatened legal action against France.
More importantly, the financial crisis and the European sovereign debt crisis struck during Mr Sarkozy's term and he has been paying a heavy price for that. When there was panic in the Eurozone that Greece would default, Sarkozy tried to project himself as a dynamic leader trying to find solutions along with German Chancellor Angela Merkel. But Europe's solution of rigour for member states in trouble is already being criticised. This has given a certain amount of credibility to Sarkozy's rival Mr Hollande who didn't put big public spending cuts at the centre of his agenda and said he would focus on growth instead.
Mr Sarkozy also spearheaded the campaign for NATO action against Gaddafi's forces in Libya. Unfortunately in the last phase of the campaign, a French news website called Mediapart, published a note that suggested that the now dead Libyan dictator Moammar Gaddafi may have released 50 million euros for Sarkozy's election campaign. Mr Sarkozy has denied this and has sued the website for forgery of documents.
Back home Sarkozy tried to bring in tough reforms and increased the age of retirement from 60 to 62. His slogan in the 2007 election was "Work more to earn more". But the French still have huge concerns about their cost of living. Unemployment has gone up to 10%. Sarkozy had said once that he would not run for a second term if that happens. Many of Sarkozy's policies have also been criticised as being pro rich.
Mr Hollande is clearing riding high on this anti Sarkozy wave. 'Mr Normal' as he is called, was seen just a couple of days ago, shopping for his groceries in a supermarket. He says, unlike Sarkozy, he will not try to divide the French or to provoke fear and panic. He has criticised Mr Sarkozy for giving France a "bad image". Mr Hollande had been criticised for being too 'soft' and had refused Mr Sarkozy's challenge to face him in three televised debates. The one and only debate that did happen between them however saw Mr Hollande coming out strong. When asked during the debate, what kind of President he would make, Hollande repeated "Moi, Président de la République" (Me, President of the Republic) as many as 16 times, each time saying how he will be a different President. Sitting across the table, Sarkozy listened to this quietly, something rather uncharacteristic of him. Some said it was a first sign that Mr Sarkozy may have given up. After the debate, speaking to his supporters, Mr Hollande mocked Mr Sarkozy saying he regretted having said no to three debates, "Sarkozy was going to turn the tables. But the table was solid. And it's not easy to bite me", he said.