Defeat looms for Sarkozy despite poll rally

French president Nicolas Sarkozy has cut his rival’s lead to the smallest margin so far in the run up to an April and May presidential election, according to a new poll.

However, the poll showed that Socialist candidate Francois Hollande would still comfortably beat Mr Sarkozy in a run-off.

The president has been capitalising on his central role in Europe’s struggle to contain its debt crisis, and gained ground even after announcing plans for an unpopular sales tax rise and after Mr Hollande’s campaign took a more aggressive tone.

In the first round of the two-stage vote, on April 22, Mr Hollande would win 28 per cent of the vote while Mr Sarkozy would secure 26 per cent, the poll by IFOP for weekly newspaper Le Journal du Dimanche found.

Mr Hollande had a 10-point first-round lead shortly after the Socialist Party chose him as their candidate in October.

In the run-off, the poll showed Mr Hollande winning with 54 per cent of the vote while Mr Sarkozy would get 46 per cent, also the smallest margin registered so far in the election race and down from 20 percentage points in October.

Mr Sarkozy hopes that, in the 6 May run-off, he can pick up ballots from people voting for far-right candidate Marine Le Pen and centrist Francois Bayrou in the first round. Pollsters say many of those voters have not decided yet who to pick in the second round.

Mr Sarkozy, is widely expected to announce in February that he is seeking a second mandate.