February 03, 2008

Abstract: (Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Most people in France are disappointed with the way Nicolas Sarkozy is running the country, according to a poll by CSA published in Valeurs Actuelles. Only 37 per cent of respondents think Sarkozy is taking France in the right direction, down 13 points since November.

(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Most people in France are disappointed with the way Nicolas Sarkozy is running the country, according to a poll by CSA published in Valeurs Actuelles. Only 37 per cent of respondents think Sarkozy is taking France in the right direction, down 13 points since November.

Conversely, 49 per cent of respondents have a positive assessment of the actions of French prime minister François Fillon, virtually unchanged for the past three months.

In May 2007, Sarkozy, a centre-right Union for a Popular Movement (UMP) candidate and former interior minister, won the presidential run-off with 53.06 per cent of the vote. Sarkozy appointed Fillon—who had been his adviser and presidential campaign leader—as prime minister.

On Feb. 1, Fillon ratified his promise of balancing the French economy in the next four years, saying, "The target is still to return to balance in 2012. (…) We have our program, we’re not going to change economic policy, or financial policy, or the pace. We think we’re moving at the right pace."

Polling Data

Would you say French president Nicolas Sarkozy is taking the country in the right direction, or the wrong direction?

	Jan. 2008	Dec. 2007	Nov. 2007
Right direction	37%	44%	50%
Wrong direction	52%	44%	41%

Would you say French prime minister François Fillon is taking the country in the right direction, or the wrong direction?

	Jan. 2008	Dec. 2007	Nov. 2007
Right direction	49%	47%	48%
Wrong direction	33%	37%	37%

Source: CSA / Valeurs Actuelles
Methodology: Telephone interviews with 960 French adults, conducted on Jan. 23 and Jan. 24, 2008. No margin of error was provided.