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| Version 3 | Version 4 |
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| Sarkozy declares presidential bid | Sarkozy declares presidential bid |
| (1 day later) | |
| France's Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy has declared his intention to run for the presidency next April. | France's Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy has declared his intention to run for the presidency next April. |
| The announcement had been widely expected, and Mr Sarkozy is the favourite to win the election, according to recent opinion polls. | The announcement had been widely expected, and Mr Sarkozy is the favourite to win the election, according to recent opinion polls. |
| His centre-right UMP party is due to select its candidate in January and President Jacques Chirac is not expected to seek a third term. | His centre-right UMP party is due to select its candidate in January and President Jacques Chirac is not expected to seek a third term. |
| Whoever wins the UMP's race will face the Socialist Party's Segolene Royal. | Whoever wins the UMP's race will face the Socialist Party's Segolene Royal. |
| Always tempted to do more, to the point of going too far Le Progres French press on Sarkozy | |
| "I feel I have the strength, the energy and the desire to propose a different view of France," Mr Sarkozy said in an interview to be published in a number of regional newspapers on Thursday. | "I feel I have the strength, the energy and the desire to propose a different view of France," Mr Sarkozy said in an interview to be published in a number of regional newspapers on Thursday. |
| "I have the ambition to develop a new relationship with the French based on two words: confidence and respect. Confidence in pledges made and respect for every Frenchman considered individually." | "I have the ambition to develop a new relationship with the French based on two words: confidence and respect. Confidence in pledges made and respect for every Frenchman considered individually." |
| A new approach | A new approach |
| Both Mr Sarkozy and Ms Royal have promised to reverse what many people see as a feeling of decline in France. | Both Mr Sarkozy and Ms Royal have promised to reverse what many people see as a feeling of decline in France. |
| Mr Sarkozy has been dubbed the French Margaret Thatcher, someone who will shake up the country, says the BBC's Clive Myrie, in Paris. | |
| For many people France has been in the doldrums during the Chirac years, our correspondent says, with a stuttering economy and diminishing stature in Europe and the world. | For many people France has been in the doldrums during the Chirac years, our correspondent says, with a stuttering economy and diminishing stature in Europe and the world. |
| Ms Royal has said she wants to write a new page in French historyMr Sarkozy will offer UMP members an alternative to candidates from the Chirac wing of the party - people like Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin, or Defence Minister Michele Alliot-Marie. | |
| He is thought to have the backing of about 75% of the UMP's membership, which stands at about 300,000. | He is thought to have the backing of about 75% of the UMP's membership, which stands at about 300,000. |
| Both Mr Sarkozy and Ms Royal are in their fifties. Whoever wins the election, set for 22 April, will become the first president of France born after World War II. | Both Mr Sarkozy and Ms Royal are in their fifties. Whoever wins the election, set for 22 April, will become the first president of France born after World War II. |
| The election campaign will officially get under way on 9 April. | The election campaign will officially get under way on 9 April. |
| President Chirac's five-year term expires in mid-May. He is not expected to run for a third term. | President Chirac's five-year term expires in mid-May. He is not expected to run for a third term. |