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France's presidential election
Sarkozy's moment May 10th 2007 From The Economist print edition
And, mercifully, a fresh start for France
AFP
Get article background A GRIPPING French presidential election has ended in a resounding victory for the better candidate. After a huge turnout in the second round on May 6th, the centre-right's Nicolas Sarkozy defeated the Socialists' Ségolène Royal by 53-47%, the biggest winning margin for the right in a straight right-left contest for over 40 years. Mr Sarkozy made some unwise promises during his campaign, with populist talk of an interventionist industrial policy and of new protectionism. But his central message could not be clearer: France needs profound change if its economy is to revive (see article). His solid majority gives Mr Sarkozy a strong mandate for reform, even if some of the hurdles ahead are daunting. Mr Sarkozy should surmount the first by securing a big majority for his UMP party in the parliamentary election next month. After that, he and his likely prime minister, François Fillon, will want to move fast, starting with measures to liberalise the labour market. But it is not passing laws that will be the measure of Mr Sarkozy's mettle; it is facing down the streets, where protesters have demolished so many previous efforts at reform. Mr Sarkozy knows this better than most. Jacques Chirac, his predecessor, one-time mentor and founder of the UMP, in whose government Mr Sarkozy served for five years, faced street protests in 1995, his first year in office—and backed down. The same thing happened again last spring. This biggest test of his presidency is one Mr Sarkozy needs to face up to early. Paradoxically, that is in part because Europe's economies are now doing well, with growth rising and unemployment falling. That helps create a more benign climate in which to make painful reforms, but it also shows up starkly how badly France is doing compared with Britain and Germany. The big vote for Mr Sarkozy partly reflects a burning desire to make up lost ground after years of underperformance. The firmer he is in taking on unions, insiders, pensioners and others with a stake in today's over-protected system, the greater will be the eventual economic rewards. In this and other ways Europe will provide a second big test for France's new president. Two years of paralysis have passed since French and Dutch voters rejected the proposed EU constitution in mid-2005. The EU cannot progress without active French participation. Mr Sarkozy has set out his stall for a slimmed-down constitutional treaty that can be ratified without new referendums. This might just work, but the odds against remain high: striking a deal that satisfies the British (soon to acquire a new leader in Gordon Brown), the Poles, the Czechs and others will be hard. It would be better for the EU's leaders, France's included, to give up internal quarrels over unnecessary institutional change and instead rebuild Europe's place in the world—starting with its volatile neighbourhood.
No Turks in Club Med? For the most part, when it comes to foreign policy, both Mr Sarkozy's arrival and Mr Chirac's departure are thoroughly welcome. Bitter past quarrels over the Iraq war can now be consigned to history. It helps that Mr Sarkozy is by instinct more pro-American (and pro-Israel) than most of the French political elite. He has been commendably tough on Iran's nuclear ambitions. His ambivalence over France's troop commitment in Afghanistan is worrying. But in general he promises to be a more congenial president than Mr Chirac for the Americans, British and Germans to deal with. His election offers every hope of a fresh start for France, and for Europe.
