A week after initial votes showed the far-right anti-Euro National Front party gaining ground in French municipal elections, it appears the ongoing disappointment in the ruling Socialists is increasing (amid record joblessness).
- *FAR RIGHT MAKES FURTHER GAINS IN FRENCH MUNI ELECTIONS
- *MOSCOVICI SAYS TODAY'S ELECTIONS 'UNQUESTIONABLY A DEFEAT'
- *MOSCOVICI SAYS IT'S 'DIFFICULT TO REFORM FRANCE'
These are the first nationwide elections in France since Hollande took office and point to rather concerning lack of support for his party and his policies (and the core of the EU); but a record high 38.5% of votes abstained suggesting major apathy as the country's north-south divide grows.
Defeat for Hollande...
France's governing Socialist Party (PS) and its allies have suffered heavy losses in the second round of the country's municipal elections, exit polls show.
President Francois Hollande's PS lost control of the northeastern city of Reims and the southwestern city of Pau and the western city of Quimper, among others, an Ipsos poll for French television predicted.
But a potentially concerning rise in nationalist fervor...
The main winner was the centre-right Union for a Popular Movement (UMP) but the far-right National Front also consolidated its first-round gains, picking up the southern towns of Frejus and Beziers, the projections showed.
Which seems to be splitting the nation...
Mayoral candidates linked to the National Front won mayoral races in the southern towns of Beziers and Frejus, while the anti-European Union party failed in its goal of winning races in larger cities such as Perpignan and Avignon, according to exit polls.
The gains by the National Front in 36,000 French municipalities on March 23 reflect discontent with Hollande after 22 months in office... as his promise to 'fix' joblessness is not going well...
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Perhaps Hollande should have banned Twitter and YouTube also (for the last 2 years)...