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Rivals woo France's 'kingmaker' | |
(about 5 hours later) | |
The two rivals in France's presidential race have been trying to woo supporters of centrist candidate Francois Bayrou, who came third on Sunday. | |
The Socialist candidate, Segolene Royal, made a direct appeal to him to form an alliance. "I'm waiting for a response," she said. | |
Nicolas Sarkozy's team accused her of putting power before principles. | |
Mr Sarkozy of the centre-right UMP is favourite to win the run-off. His aides want a deal with Mr Bayrou's MPs. | |
Ms Royal will face Mr Sarkozy in the run-off on 6 May and opinion polls point to a victory for Mr Sarkozy. | |
Political manoeuvring | |
Ms Royal said she was "not exerting any pressure" on Mr Bayrou "or setting him any ultimatum". | |
The votes of Mr Bayrou's supporters are likely to prove decisiveBut she added: "I think it is my responsibility as a presidential election candidate to work out which ideas we can agree on". | |
Nearly seven million voters backed Mr Bayrou, leader of the UDF, in the first round. | |
He will give an eagerly awaited news conference at 1530 (1330 GMT) on Wednesday, but allies say he is unlikely to back either candidate openly. He is seen as a potential "kingmaker" who could make or break the election for either side. | |
The UDF has joined conservative governments in the past and some of Mr Sarkozy's aides are exploring a possible deal again for the forthcoming parliamentary elections in June. | |
But in the run-up to the first round Mr Bayrou stressed his desire for a third way in French politics, to jettison the traditional left-right split. | |
NEXT STAGE OF ELECTION 27 April: Campaigning restarts2 May: Televised debate6 May: Second round poll10 May: Final official results French voters' views Q&A: French election In depth: France decides | NEXT STAGE OF ELECTION 27 April: Campaigning restarts2 May: Televised debate6 May: Second round poll10 May: Final official results French voters' views Q&A: French election In depth: France decides |
For his part, Mr Sarkozy told supporters in Dijon, eastern France: "I will not cut a deal at the expense of my convictions." | |
Mr Sarkozy won 31% of Sunday's vote, while Ms Royal, bidding to be France's first female leader, took nearly 26% - beating 10 other candidates. | Mr Sarkozy won 31% of Sunday's vote, while Ms Royal, bidding to be France's first female leader, took nearly 26% - beating 10 other candidates. |
Opinion polls gave Mr Sarkozy between 52 and 54% of the vote in the second round - against 46 and 48% for Ms Royal. Only 14% were uncertain of who they wanted to cast their ballot for. | |
They will confront each other in a televised debate on 2 May. |