Sarkozy Concedes Defeat in French Right-wing Primary
Local Editor
Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy conceded defeat Sunday in the race to choose the conservative nominee for next year's presidential election.
Meanwhile, Former PMs Francois Fillon and Alain Juppe both outpolled Sarkozy in early returns, and stand to advance to the Nov. 27 runoff.
"I did not manage to convince the voters," Sarkozy said in a speech from his campaign headquarters in Paris Sunday. He called on his supporters to vote for Fillon in the second round.
In a major upset, with more than 3.2 million votes counted of an estimated total over 5 million, Fillon had 44 percent, Juppe 28.1 and Sarkozy 21.1.
Fillon took a commanding lead in the two-round primary that is widely expected to decide the country's next leader.
If the results are confirmed, Fillon has pulled off a remarkable come-from-behind victory in the first round after trailing Sarkozy and Juppe in all but the final days of the two-month campaign.
Far-right leader Marine Le Pen has cast a shadow over the contest because whoever wins the nomination is tipped to face - and beat - her in the decisive presidential run-off next May.
With France's ruling left bitterly divided, the campaign has been heavily influenced by the populist forces behind Britain's vote to leave the European Union and Donald Trump's shock victory in the United States election.
Voters appear to have chosen the more understated style of Fillon over the brashness of Sarkozy, who still deeply divides France four years after being turfed out of office by the Socialist Francois Hollande.
Juppe was the early front-runner in the campaign but the pro-business Fillon made stunning progress, surging up the opinion polls in recent days.
It appears that the participation of left-wing voters in the first-ever right-wing primary could have been a significant factor in dragging down Sarkozy. Many left-wing voters are thought to have voted against him.
Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team
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