IMF head Dominique Strauss-Kahn, facing sexual assault charges in New York, was the front-runner in the latest opinion polls to win next year's presidential election in France and replace incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy. The 62-year-old Socialist, who served as French finance minister in the late 1990s, left for Washington in late 2007 to head the International Monetary Fund, just as the global economy was hit by the worst downturn since World War Two. The polls have consistently shown Strauss-Kahn, who has yet to officially declare his candidacy, trouncing Sarkozy and leading all other potential challengers in the presidential election next April...