(Angus Reid Global Scan) - Many adults in France believe former finance minister Nicolas Sarkozy should run for president even if Jacques Chirac seeks a third term in office, according to a poll by BVA published in L'Express. 54 per cent of respondents support Sarkozy's candidacy, even if Chirac is a contender.

On Nov. 28, the 49-year-old Sarkozy was elected president of the centre-right Union for a Popular Movement (UMP). In July, Chirac said that he would not allow Sarkozy to keep his post as finance minister and head the UMP, saying this would undermine prime minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin. Sarkozy was replaced by Hervé Gaymard in the cabinet.

Chirac won the presidential election in 1995 as a UMP nominee, and was re-elected in a run-off over Jean-Marie Le Pen in May 2002. The 72-year-old head of state has not ruled out becoming a candidate for the third time in 2007.

Polling Data

Should Nicolas Sarkozy run for president in 2007, even if Jacques Chirac does so as well?

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