Sarkozy promises reforms, more jobs
Voters signaled a strong rebuke
PARIS - The government of President Nicolas Sarkozy yesterday promised to reinvigorate its promised reforms, including more jobs and a higher standard of living, after voters threw his party out of office in a string of towns and cities.
Sarkozy will "take into account the message expressed by the French," government spokesman Laurent Wauquiez said, adding that there would be adjustments in the Cabinet soon but no major shake-up.
The president's office announced that Sarkozy was doing away with the job of official spokesman, held by David Martinon, disgraced after an internal party rebellion forced him out of the mayoral race in Sarkozy's fiefdom of Neuilly-sur-Seine.
Two men, Elysee Secretary General Claude Gueant and chief diplomatic aide Jean-David Levitte, will handle presidential communications, Sarkozy's office said.
Reading into this weekend's election results, Wauquiez said on France-Inter radio that voters seemed to want faster action on economic and social changes that affect their daily lives.
The results from Sunday's second round of municipal elections were a sobering reminder of how Sarkozy, 53, has shrunk in the estimation of some voters since he was elected last May on a program of in-depth change for France.
Official results that are nearly complete showed parties of the left leading slightly nationwide, with 48.7 percent of the overall vote to 47.6 percent for the right.
Prime Minister Francois Fillon vowed to stay the course of reform, despite demands for a new tack from opposition Socialists buoyed by their showing in the elections. Fillon promised stepped-up efforts to create jobs and fatten paychecks. "You can't change a great country like ours in a few months," he said.
Reeling since Sarkozy defeated their candidate, Segolene Royal, last May, the Socialists could now bounce back as more of a coherent, forceful opposition to Sarkozy on the back of the municipal results. Royal called Sunday's results "a vote of hope."
The one major victory for Sarkozy's UMP party was Marseille, where it hung on after a tight and crucial contest.
Paris and Lyon stayed in Socialist hands, while Toulouse, Strasbourg, Blois, Reims, Caen, and Amiens were among many towns and cities that swung left. In Perigueux, Xavier Darcos, education minister, lost his reelection bid.
