Victory, but no rout, for France's right

June 18, 2007

President Nicolas Sarkozy's right-wing party won a solid majority to launch his programme of reforms in France's legislative election on Sunday, but failed to secure a widely predicted landslide. It won 314 seats in the 577-seat lower house of parliament -- fewer than in the last general election in 2002 -- but took several serious blows as well, losing the number two in government and a handful of Sarkozy's hand-picked candidates. The results show the left has not lost its power at the ballot box.