Free Republic

Sarkozy Defeated In Primary For French Right's Presidential Candidate Former prime ministers François Fillon and Alain Juppé face second vote on 27 November, after Nicolas Sarkozy suffers humiliating rejection Angelique Chrisafis in Paris 20 November 2016 Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy’s political career has been effectively ended, after he was dealt a humiliating defeat on Sunday by his former prime minister François Fillon in the first round of the race to choose the rightwing Republican party’s candidate for the presidency next spring. Fillon, a socially conservative, free-market reformer who admires Margaret Thatcher and voted against same-sex marriage, came close to...

President Nicolas Sarkozy reappointed François Fillon the country’s prime minister and named a new, more rightist cabinet on Sunday, a day after Mr. Fillon and the previous government resigned. A steady presence popular in the party, Mr. Fillon spent the day in conversations and negotiations on the new cabinet, which was announced on Sunday night, although the choices were ultimately Mr. Sarkozy’s. With Mr. Sarkozy’s poll ratings at record lows 18 months before the next presidential election, the cabinet reshuffle is intended to re-energize and reunite the governing center-right party, to put together a more politically coherent group that can...

Juppe says he took steps to end all irregularities A court has found former French Prime Minister Alain Juppe guilty of involvement in a party funding scam in Paris in the 1980s and early 1990s. Juppe, one of President Jacques Chirac's closest allies, immediately appealed against the conviction. The court gave him an 18-month suspended sentence and barred him from political office for up to 10 years. However, he will be able to continue as mayor of Bordeaux, and as head of the governing UMP party during the appeal. The prosecution argued that Juppe allowed party employees to be put...