French 1st round of presidential election kicks off

The campaign for the first round of France's presidential election has officially started on Monday. The first radio and TV advertisements were broadcast on Monday and posters have begun appearing on local authority noticeboards across the country. President Nicolas Sarkozy is ahead in the opinion polls for the first round but Socialist rival Francois Hollande is predicted to win the second round. Campaigning is due to end on 21 April. The first round takes place the following day, with the run-off on 6 May. In this French election, the 10 candidates are allowed a strict 43 minutes of campaigning on television before 20 April and they are banned from seeking donation and from denigrating their opponents, under the strict rules of the audio-visual authority (CSA). Hollande is leading in the polls to win the May 6 second round but after months of trailing, Sarkozy has in recent weeks moved slightly ahead in first-round voting intentions. Last Friday, the latest French based survey released showed Sarkozy ahead with 29 percent to Hollande's 26.5 percent in the first round, though Hollande would win the run-off with 53 percent. Far-right candidate Marine Le Pen of the National Front was third with 16.5 percent, followed by Left Front contender Jean-Luc Melenchon with 12.5 percent and centrist Francois Bayrou with 10 percent.