(VOVworld) - France’s presidential election is entering its final phase. The latest poll indicates that the race to the Elysée is still undecided and  the election will most likely require two rounds on April 22^nd and May 6^th. VOV foreign desk editor Anh Huyen has details.

France's presidential candidates

A poll conducted by the CSA on April 19^th shows the incumbent President Nicolas Sarkozy of the right-wing Union for a Popular Movement (UMP) is 5 points behind his main rival Francois Hollande of the left-wing Socialist Party (PS). Hollande took a giant step forward this week to 29% of support. Meanwhile, National Front candidate Marine Le Pen is at 17%, 2 points ahead of Left Front candidate Jean-Luc Melenchon. Centrist Francois Bayrou of the Democratic Movement (MoDem) ranks 5^th with 10% of the votes.  According to the CSA poll, Hollande would win 58% in a runoff round to Sarkozy’s 42%.

Socialist Party candidate Francois Hollande (left) and his rival Nicolas Sarkozy

As the presidential campaign enters the final sprint, all candidates are concentrating on presenting a good image. All eyes are now on Hollande and Sarkozy, the incumbent president now in an underdog position. The French Center for Studies Public Opinion and Awareness says Sarkozy faces numerous problems in introducing a tightly-structured plan to French voters. In a final push to win the election, Sarkozy is meeting face to face with voters, including a big rally in Paris’ Concorde Square on  April 15^th. He will hold a final rally on April 20^th in Nice. Sarkozy hopes to utilize his experience in two face to face debates with his rival Hollande if the election goes to the runoff. This is a slim hope because during his 5 years in power, Sarkozy has not had much success: skyrocketing pubic debt, rising unemployment, declining growth and social unrest. Even some of the UMP campaigners are anticipating Sakozy’s defeat. Le Figaro has reported discussions within the government about what should be done after the president’s defeat.

Left-wing candidate Hollande has made an impression on voters with his clear commitments and roadmap if he wins. Such commitments are divided into 3 phases: from  May 6^th to  June 29^th; from  July 3^rd to  August 2^nd and from August 2012 to June 2013. Hollande pledges to cut salaries of the president and cabinet members 30%, create a professional ethic directive for cabinet members, increase allowances for students 25%, create jobs for young people and the elderly, and fight social inequality. On April 15^th, the Socialist Party candidate geared up for final rallies with his supporters, including a 100,000 strong demonstration in Vincennes.

Although recent public polls show Sarkozy trailing Hollande, their gap is within the margins of error. So it’s impossible to know who will win the first round. In the previous election, the centrist candidate came in 3^rd with 15% of the votes. But this time Francois Bayrou is hardly assured of the 3^rd place and is projected to win only 10% of the votes. It seems that Sarkozy can’t find any ally to increase votes for him in the runoff round. Strong criticism from Bayrou and Le Pen against Sarkozy does not mean that Hollande can have enough votes to win the election. The race to the Elysée Palace promises to be unpredictable.