Latest update: 24/10/2011 

- France - François Hollande - Nicolas Sarkozy - presidential elections


French presidential election: Sarkozy vs Hollande

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The voters have finally spoken and in the end, the favourite of the open Socialist primary won. François Hollande clinched the nomination and will try to become president next May. Only one Socialist has reached that goal over the past half-century. His first name was also François, and his last name, of course, was Mitterrand.

FACE-OFF
By FRANCE 24

Marc Perelman interviews Jean-Marc Gonin, Senior Writer at Le Figaro Magazine, and Philip Turle, Journalist at RFI.

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Claude Guéant: Sarkozy's lieutenant in trouble

Claude Guéant was for years the shadow of Nicolas Sarkozy, his right-hand man, his closest adviser. Now, he is in a lot of trouble as revelations about his financial dealings keep piling up. Another scandal making waves and involving the entourage of the former president is the so-called Bernard Tapie affair, with the government looking into how this tycoon received 400 million euros in a private arbitration scheme fraught with suspicion.
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His name was Clément Méric. He was a 19-year-old student in political sciences and a left-wing activist. On Wednesday night, he was beaten to death in central Paris by what appears to be a gang of far-right youngsters. His death has prompted a wave of indignation and comes on the heels of a very heated debate on gay marriage. Also this week: Nicolas Sarkozy crossed the Channel and hinted at a political comeback.
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Gay marriage: the end of the story?
30/05/2013 - FACE-OFF

Gay marriage: the end of the story?

That's it, the first gay mariage was celebrated on Wednesday in Montpellier after months of tension and polarization. Will the sound and the fury die down? Also this week, France and Germany are spending the week together, with a joint initiative to boost youth employment, a joint report on competitiveness and Angela Merkel visiting Paris to lay the ground for a Franco-German major initiative at the European level.
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23/05/2013 - FACE-OFF

Energy: is Europe losing the battle?

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17/05/2013 - FACE-OFF

Presidential press conference: Hollande in the hot seat

This Thursday, François Hollande held his second full-fledged press conference at the Elysée Palace. With unemployment skyrocketing, France officially in recession and his popularity at a record-low, the French president used that opportunity to defend his record and promise that year II of his presidency will be a year of action. On Europe, on unemployment and on the explosive reforms of the pension system and family benefits. Will this be enough to ignite a comeback?

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