(Angus Reid Global Scan) - Many adults in France believe their current head of government should step down following this month's plebiscite on the European Constitution, according to a poll by Ifop published in Valeurs Actuelles. 54 per cent of respondents believe Jean-Pierre Raffarin should stand down.

The governing centre-right Union for a Popular Movement (UMP) has been affected by the upcoming referendum on the European Constitution. Recent public opinion polls suggest a very close race in the plebiscite scheduled for May 29.

Raffarin has headed the French government since May 2002. A series of reforms to the health service and the pension system resulted in acute losses for the governing centre-right parties in the 2004 regional and European Parliament elections. In March, France's unemployment rate was 10.2 per cent. Around 2.7 million French adults are out of work.

As far as potential successors for Raffarin, current UMP president and former finance minister Nicolas Sarkozy heads the list with 31 per cent, followed by interior minister Dominique de Villepin, employment minister Jean-Louis Borloo, defence minister Michèle Alliot-Marie, health minister Philippe Douste-Blazy, finance minister Thierry Breton, and national education minister François Fillon.

Last November, Sarkozy was confirmed as the UMP's new leader. Five months earlier, French president Jacques Chirac declared he would not allow Sarkozy to keep his post as finance minister and head the UMP, saying this would undermine Raffarin.

Polling Data

Do you wish that the president name a new prime minister following the referendum on the European constitution, or do you wish for Jean-Pierre Raffarin to remain in the position?

In the event the prime minister is replaced, who would you prefer in the position?

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