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Chirac, French conservatives stung by election result
Left could take parliament in runoffs this Sunday
May 26, 1997
Web posted at: 10:15 a.m. EDT (1415 GMT)PARIS (CNN) -- French conservatives, stung by their poorest showing in a first-round parliamentary election in 30 years, found themselves Monday in a battle to retain power.
With 100 percent of the districts counted from Sunday's ballot, unofficial results showed that the center-right coalition of President Jacques Chirac and Prime Minister Alain Juppe captured just under 30 percent of the vote, compared to 40.6 percent for a left-wing alliance of Socialists, Communists and ecologists.
The far-right National Front, with its strong stances against immigration and European integration, took 15 percent, its best showing ever.
While Socialists and their allies celebrated, the results caused the Paris stock market to plunge nearly 4 percent in early trading Monday. It later recovered.
Candidates who captured more than 12.5 percent advance to the second round of balloting next Sunday. Projections showed that if the French left can hold on to the level of support it received in the first round, it could capture a small majority in the National Assembly, which would force Chirac into an unwieldy "cohabitation" with the opposition.
Conservatives say they heard voters' message
However, only about a dozen out of the 577 races were decided in the first round, so the outcome is still very much up in the air. Traditionally, French voters often use the first round of balloting as a protest vote.
Leaders of the center-right alliance said they had gotten the message from disenchanted voters and would take the fight to the second round.
"It's a warning," said Alain Lamassoure, government spokesman and budget minister. "The game isn't over, and we're counting on winning the second round."
"Frankly, it's a disappointing result," said Herve de Charette, the foreign minister. "I think this is a very clear message for the majority and for the government."
Chirac's election gamble may have backfired
The irony in Sunday's results is that, constitutionally, Chirac did not have to call an election for 10 more months, and the center-right coalition held about 80 percent of the seats in the National Assembly.
But he took a gamble and called elections before imposing economic austerity measures needed to qualify France for the single European currency in 1999. The thinking was that conservatives would be more likely to win before those measures were imposed than after.
Now, if Chirac is forced to share power with the left, the pace of budget cuts and other austerity measures would likely slow. The Communists in particular have been cool to the idea of joining the single currency.
Socialist leader Lionel Jospin , who is likely to become prime minister if the left wins a majority next Sunday, called on voters to back a "pact for change."
"The French can see a future with the left," he said. "The forces of the left must rally together."
"The next government must make it a priority to listen to the concerns of all the French who feel worried, who feel forgotten and threatened," Jospin said.
Unpopular Juppe hints again that he may go
The biggest loser in Sunday's ballot may have been Juppe, whose unpopularity was seen as a major handicap for the center-right. On Monday, Juppe would not directly address the question of whether he should go but indicated, as he had during the campaign, that it was a possibility.
"If the only obstacle to the renewal and modernization of France is a choice of personnel, I am completely convinced that the president will make the right choice," said Juppe. "What is at stake is not Alain Juppe but France."
Monday, Chirac was giving no hint as to whether he was considering sacking Juppe.
One of the big question marks for the second round is where voters who backed candidates from the National Front, led by Jean-Marie Le Pen, will go.
The Front was expected to announce later Monday whether it would urge its voters to support the center-right or the left in constituencies where its candidates were eliminated in the first round. But Le Pen went out of his way to take a swipe at the conservative president.
"President Chirac put himself personally into this battle, and he has been defeated. He should go," Le Pen said.
However, on Tuesday, Chirac will get the opportunity to use the trappings of his office to boost his coalition's prospects. He will host a signing ceremony at Elysee Palace for a new partnership between Russia and NATO.
"It shows that under his leadership, France can play an important role in the new NATO," said a presidential aide.
Correspondent Jim Bitterman and Reuters contributed to this report.
Related stories:
- French leftists gain ground in parliamentary vote - May 25, 1997
- Chirac's Conservatives favored as French campaigning ends - May 23, 1997
- French Socialists vow to create jobs for unemployed - May 21, 1997
- French heartland voters cynical as election nears - May 19, 1997
Related sites:
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- French Socialist Party (in French)
- French Government Website (in French)
- France National Assembly Website (in French)
- Politics Online (in French)
- Elections in Europe - France
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