Hollande named French Socialist presidential candidate

Francois Hollande was officially named the presidential candidate of France's opposition Socialist Party at a party convention in Paris, a week after he won the party primary. Hollande, a former party leader and member of parliament representing the central region of Correze, defeated party leader Martine Aubry in the second round of the primary on October 16.
He won 56.8 per cent of votes cast by leftist voters, against 43.1 per cent for Aubry. The Socialist politician, who styles himself a pragmatist, is tipped to beat incumbent President Nicolas Sarkozy in next year's polls. A poll carried out by CSA pollsters this week showed Hollande would win 35 per cent of votes in the first round of the election in April, compared with 25 per cent for Sarkozy and 16 per cent for Marine Le Pen, leader of the far right National Front.