April 22, 2008

Abstract: (Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Public support for Nicolas Sarkozy remains tepid, according to a poll by Ifop published in Le Journal du Dimanche. 36 per cent of respondents are satisfied with their president’s performance, down one point since March.

(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Public support for Nicolas Sarkozy remains tepid, according to a poll by Ifop published in Le Journal du Dimanche. 36 per cent of respondents are satisfied with their president’s performance, down one point since March.

In May 2007, Sarkozy, candidate for the centre-right Union for a Popular Movement (UMP) and former interior minister, won the presidential run-off with 53.06 per cent of the vote. Sarkozy appointed François Fillon—who had been his adviser and presidential campaign leader—as prime minister. 52 per cent of respondents are satisfied with Fillon’s performance, down six points in a month.

On Apr. 18, Sarkozy linked global warming and the ongoing conflict in Sudan, saying, "In Darfur, we see this explosive mixture from the impact of climate change, which prompts emigration by increasingly impoverished people, which then has consequences in war. If we continue in this direction, climate change will encourage migrations of populations who have nothing left toward territory where populations don’t have much, and the Darfur crisis will be just one crisis among dozens of others."

Polling Data

Are you satisfied or dissatisfied with Nicolas Sarkozy’s performance as president?

	Apr. 2008	Mar. 2008	Feb. 2008
Satisfied	36%	37%	38%
Dissatisfied	64%	63%	62%

Are you satisfied or dissatisfied with François Fillon’s performance as prime minister?

	Apr. 2008	Mar. 2008	Feb. 2008
Satisfied	52%	58%	57%
Dissatisfied	47%	40%	40%

Source: Ifop / Le Journal du Dimanche
Methodology: Telephone interviews to 1,867 French adults, conducted from Apr. 10 to Apr. 18, 2008. No margin of error was provided.