Far Right, Left Seem to Gain in Regional Voting
Voters dealt a solid blow to France’s governing conservatives in the first round of regional elections, giving the leftist opposition about 40% of the vote and boosting the extreme right, unofficial results indicated.
Exit polls showed President Jacques Chirac’s party receiving 34% of the vote, while Jean-Marie Le Pen’s extreme-right National Front received about 17% as voters chose among 17,658 candidates running for hundreds of council seats in 26 regions.
The vote appeared to be a warning to Chirac over high unemployment and state spending cuts. A second round of voting is set for Sunday.
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