(Angus Reid Global Scan) - Prospective Socialist Party (PS) candidate Ségolène Royal would face either of two French government ministers in the second round of next year's presidential ballot, according to a poll by Ipsos published in Le Point.

In the first sample, interior minister Nicolas Sarkozy of the centre-right Union for a Popular Movement (UMP) is first with 36 per cent, followed by Royal—the leader of the regional government of Poitou-Charentes—with 28 per cent. Jean-Marie Le Pen of the National Front (FN) is third with nine per cent, followed by Union for French Democracy (UDF) leader François Bayrou and Movement for France (MPF) leader Philippe de Villiers with seven per cent each.

In a second sample, Royal is in first place with 32 per cent, followed by current prime minister Dominique de Villepin with 25 per cent, Le Pen with 13 per cent, Bayrou with nine per cent, and de Villiers with eight per cent. In two prospective run-off scenarios, Sarkozy is tied with Royal, and the PS member holds a six-point edge over de Villepin.

Last week, Royal said Sarkozy and de Villepin were embroiled in a "soap opera" over the UMP's presidential nod, adding, "There is no message of hope. There is no political will. We don't know in which direction the country is being led."

The UMP's Jacques Chirac won the presidential ballot in 1995, and was re-elected in a run-off over Le Pen in May 2002. The next election is tentatively scheduled for April 2007.

Polling Data

Who would you vote for in the presidential election?

Option 1

Option 2

Ségolène Royal 53% - 47% Dominique de Villepin
Ségolène Royal 50% - 50% Nicolas Sarkozy

Archive Search

Over 19,700 Polls
Search the Angus Reid Global Monitor Polls & Research archive.