With 95% of ballots counted, Fillon had garnered 66.5% of the votes while Juppé trailed with 33.2%. France’s two-round presidential elections in April and May are being watched as the next possible shakeup of the political system, after Donald Trump won the US presidency this month. Polls in France have consistently shown that the far-right Front National leader, Marine Le Pen, will make it to the final round runoff but that it would be difficult for her to win. Fillon is now the favourite to face her and win the presidency next year.
In his victory speech, Fillon said the Socialist François Hollande’s presidency had been “pathetic”. France “wanted action” and had to be overhauled in a way that it “hasn’t been for 30 years”. He said France had a huge need for respect, pride and, overall, authority. After a campaign in which he defended French national identity, he said people had voted for him because he represented “French values”. He said “I will defend those values and we will share them with everyone who, with their differences, loves France.”
Source: Guardian
