The French have voted in the first round of the presidential election, and once again the results reveal a deeply divided France, with no less than five major candidates. François Hollande emerges on top with a meagre 28.6% of the votes, not far ahead of Sarkozy (27%). The final round will oppose the two candidates on 6 May, but all polls foresee an easy victory for Hollande.
As usual, the socialist party fared better in the south and west, and best of all in the south-west quarter of France. Sarkozy was most appreciated along the country's eastern border and in the rural areas of the north.
The big surprise was the good score of Marine Le Pen of the far-right National Front, who was expected around 13% but managed to collect 18% of the ballots, reaching over 30% of the electorate in the north-east quarter of the country and along the Mediterranean coast.
Communist-leaning Mélenchon snatched 11% of the votes and scored particularly well in the remote and mountainous regions (Pyrenees, Limousin, Auvergne, Cévennes, Haute-Provence).
Centrist candidate François Bayrou obtained 9%, far less than expected. He did best in the Basque region, Cévenens, Brittany and Alsace.
You can see a precise map of the results for each candidate here.
As usual, the socialist party fared better in the south and west, and best of all in the south-west quarter of France. Sarkozy was most appreciated along the country's eastern border and in the rural areas of the north.
The big surprise was the good score of Marine Le Pen of the far-right National Front, who was expected around 13% but managed to collect 18% of the ballots, reaching over 30% of the electorate in the north-east quarter of the country and along the Mediterranean coast.
Communist-leaning Mélenchon snatched 11% of the votes and scored particularly well in the remote and mountainous regions (Pyrenees, Limousin, Auvergne, Cévennes, Haute-Provence).
Centrist candidate François Bayrou obtained 9%, far less than expected. He did best in the Basque region, Cévenens, Brittany and Alsace.
You can see a precise map of the results for each candidate here.