FILE: Profile of Nicolas Sarkozy, French presidential candidate for the ruling UMP party who will face Socialist Segolene Royal at the polls

Right wing French presidential candidate Nicolas Sarkozy, whose crackdown on crime, immigration and the economy have sparked not only deep political divisions but also riots in France faces tough battle against Socialist candidate Segolene Royal. In 30 years of political life, centre-right French presidential nominee Nicolas Sarkozy, 51, has been called many things -- only some of them printable. "The Mozart of Politics" and "Duracell Bunny" reflected his precocious talents and energy. "Little corporal" mocked a vaulting ambition that foes said rivalled that of another famously short leader of the French -- Napoleon Bonaparte. Now, anointed as the ruling party's, UMP, candidate, Sarkozy stands at the gates of the presidential Elysee Palace, and election in May would make him the first immigrant's son to run the euro zone's second biggest economy. He was written off in 1995 after ditching the soon-to-be President Jacques Chirac for a rival. As Finance Minister, Sarkozy had given himself a mission to lead France on a race for economic growth while pushing ahead with painful spending cuts, which he had promised to pursue with the same zeal he applied to a two-year crackdown on drug-pushers, illegal immigrants and prostitution gangs. Although he has sown the seeds of economic changes during his eight month tenure, Sarkozy has had little success in lifting growth and cutting unemployment. He ruffled feathers in Germany with his tough defence of French industry, upset some of his European partners with what they saw as go-it-alone policies, and had the red carpet rolled out for him when he visited the United States. A trained lawyer, Sarkozy eschewed the "Grande Ecole" elite universities that peers like Segolene Royal, his main Socialist challenger, used as a short-cut to the top. He worked his way up through the party ranks, a fact which, combined with his down-to-earth verbal style, has lent weight to his effort to portray himself as a mould-breaker ready to make a clean break with the past and deliver on his promises. Restored to the political fold in 2002 after seven years in the wilderness, as interior minister Sarkozy built strong public support with a crackdown on crime and immigration laws critics said would have prevented his father from becoming French. Repeated attacks by President Jacques Chirac and Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin have highlighted his strident image and fuelled suspicions they would be happy to see the interior minister lose in May. Chirac refused to attend Sarkozy's nomination rally on Sunday. Villepin briefly attended but boycotted the acceptance speech. His refusal to vote for the right's candidate earned him a roasting from UMP lawmakers last week and has unsettled the party's electorate. Sarkozy's hardline law-and-order image and blunt language are seen by his political enemies as his greatest weakness. Recent polls suggest the Socialist Segolene Royal could beat him in a May 6 run-off ballot and become France's first woman head of state. An Ifop poll for Sunday's Journal du Dimanche weekly showed that while large majorities thought he had the policies and stature to be president, 51 percent said Sarkozy worried them. Politicians of all shades blamed in part his vow to rid crime-ridden housing projects of "scum" for alienating the young and triggering suburban riots in 2005, the worst in 40 years. The outburst underscored concerns he is highly strung and could crack under pressure. His promise to make a "peaceful break" with the past sharpened fears he will push through radical reforms. His campaign slogan "Together, everything becomes possible" pictures him against a rural background and aims to project a softer, consensual, presidential image.

ITN Source | January 15, 2007

Tags:. .repeated. .restored. .politicians. .interior. .vaulting