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President of France>President| before_election = Nicolas Sarkozy| before_party = Union for a Popular Movement| after_election = François Hollande| after_party = Socialist Party (France)Percentage point>pp80.35% (second round) {{decrease}}3.62 pp| image_size = 200x200px}}Presidential elections were held in France on 22 April 2012 (or 21 April in some overseas departments and territories), with a second round run-off held on 6 May (or 5 May for those same territories) to elect the President of France (who is also ex officio one of the two joint heads of state of Andorra, a sovereign state). The incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy was running for a second five-year term for which he was eligible for under the Constitution of France.The first round ended with the selection of François Hollande and Nicolas Sarkozy as second round participants, as neither of them received a majority of votes cast in the first round. Hollande won the runoff with 51.64% of the vote to Sarkozy's 48.36%.Ministère de l'Interieur: Élection Présidentielle 2012, Résultats 2nd tour It was the second time in French history and the first time since the 1981 election that a President seeking reelection was denied a second term, and the only time the incumbent seeking reelection did not obtain the most votes in the first round.The presidential elections were followed by legislative elections in June. This is the last French presidential election in which the winning candidate won by a single-digit margin.

Electoral system

In overseas departments and territories of France located west of metropolitan France (Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Saint Martin, Saint Barthélemy, Guadeloupe, Martinique, French Guiana, and French Polynesia), voting takes place a day early, so that citizens in those territories and departments do not find themselves voting after the initial announcement of results. This is also the case for French residents in foreign countries west of metropolitan France. Some of these communities are remote; Amerindians in French Guiana, who are French citizens, "sometimes live more than three hours away by canoe from their ballot box", particularly in the large remote commune of Maripasoula. The electoral campaign papers sent to these voters, however, reportedly indicated 22 April as the day of the election, instead of 21 April.WEB,weblink Guyane: en taxi-pirogue vers les bureaux de vote, Libération, 22 April 2012, 6 May 2012,

Candidates

In order to qualify for the first round of voting, a candidate had to collect the signatures of at least five hundred elected representatives among a total of more than 47,000; these could be mayors, general councillors, regional councillors, deputies, senators, members of the European Parliament elected in France.NEWS, de la Baume, Maia, In a Political Ritual, Candidates Tour France in a Race for 500 Signatures,weblink 3 February 2012, The New York Times, 30 January 2012, The number of signatures per candidate is not released, but five hundred signatories for each candidate are chosen randomly and their names are published.WEB,weblink Présidentielle 2012: les noms de 500 parrains de chaque candidat publiés au Journal officiel, Le Huffington Post, 1 March 2017,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20170301092845weblink">weblink 1 March 2017, dead, Ten candidates qualified in 2012:Décision du 19 mars 2012 arrêtant la liste des candidats à l’élection présidentielle {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120417021012weblink |date=17 April 2012 }} – Conseil Constitutionnel

Primaries

Socialist Party

The 2011 French Socialist Party presidential primary was the first open primary (primaires citoyennes), jointly held by the French Socialist Party and Radical Party of the LeftWEB,weblink Second tour des Primaires citoyennes, les résultats, fr, Parti-socialiste.fr, 22 April 2012, dead,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20111221041628weblink">weblink 21 December 2011, {{Citation |first=Angelique |last=Chrisafis |title=French Socialist party election overshadowed by love triangle |newspaper=The Guardian |date=13 September 2011 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/sep/13/french-socialist-party-love-triangle |location=London}}{{Citation |first=Jonathan |last=Derbyshire |title=French socialist primary |newspaper=New Statesman |date=9 October 2011 |url=http://www.newstatesman.com/blogs/the-staggers/2011/10/french-baylet-riders-round}} for selecting their candidate for the 2012 presidential election. Voters had to donate at least one Euro and sign a pledge to the values of the Left to be eligible.{{Citation |title=Q&A: French Socialist presidential primaries |work=BBC News |date=16 October 2011 |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-15201158}}{{Citation |title=One million voters turn out for French Socialist presidential primary |publisher=France 24 |date=9 October 2011 |url=http://www.france24.com/en/20111009-ps-socialist-party-france-primaries-presidential-election}} The filing deadline for primary nomination papers was fixed on 13 July 2011 and six candidates competed in the first round of the vote. On election day, 9 October 2011, no candidate won at least 50% of the vote therefore the two candidates with the most votes contested a runoff election on 16 October 2011: François Hollande won the primary, defeating Martine Aubry.NEWS, Diffley, Angela, Hollande or Aubry will take on Sarkozy in presidentials, Radio France Internationale, 10 October 2011,weblink 10 October 2011, The idea for holding an open primary to choose the Socialist Party candidate was originally suggested in 2008 by the left-leaning think tank Terra Nova.WEB,weblink Pour une primaire à la Française {{!, Terra Nova |access-date=15 November 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150122103828weblink |archive-date=22 January 2015 |url-status=dead }}

Europe Écologie–The Greens

(File:2010 11 13 EVA EELV Lyon net (32).jpg|thumb|right|The candidates of the Ecology primary sitting together)Europe Écologie–The Greens (EELV) held a primary to choose its candidate. The vote was open to all members of the party and of the Independent Ecological Movement. There were four candidates. The first round was held on 29 June 2011. Eva Joly, a member of EELV and a former examining magistrate, obtained 49.75% of the vote, ahead of independent candidate and environmental campaigner Nicolas Hulot (40.22%). The other two candidates, Henri Stoll and Stéphane Lhomme, obtained 5.02% and 4.44% respectively. The second round was held on 12 July, with Eva Joly obtaining 13,223 votes (58.16%) to Hulot's 9,399."Primaire écologiste : Eva Joly l'emporte par 58 % des voix", Le Monde, 12 July 2011

Confirmed candidates

File:Francois_Hollande_2015.jpeg|Socialist Party: President of the General Council of Corrèze, former First Secretary of the Socialist Party and MP François HollandeFile:Nicolas Sarkozy in 2010.jpg|Union for a Popular Movement: On 15 February 2012, President Nicolas Sarkozy announced he was running for a second five-year term.NEWS,weblink CNN, How will shootings affect French election?, 22 March 2012, 18 February 2012,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20120523184649weblink">weblink 23 May 2012, dead, dmy-all, File:Le Pen, Marine-9586.jpg|National Front: Party president and MEP Marine Le Pen was selected on 16 May 2011.WEB,weblink chuiko.com, 22 January 2012, 9 March 2012,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20120309180704weblink">weblink dead, weblink {{Dead link|date=April 2019|bot=InternetArchiveBot|fix-attempted=yes}}WEB,weblink marine Lepen envisage presenter en 2012, TF1 News, 29 September 2011, dead,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20080307231600weblink">weblink 7 March 2008, File:Jean-Luc Melenchon Front de Gauche 2009-03-08.jpg|Left Front: MEP, former senator and co-president of the Left Party Jean-Luc MélenchonS.C., weblink" title="archive.today/20110609105651weblink">« L’idée communiste a besoin d’un parti », L'Humanité, 10 September 2009.File:Francois bayrou close.jpg|Democratic Movement: François Bayrou, president of MoDem and MP, confirmed his candidacy on 22 August 2011.WEB,weblink François Bayrou a officialisé sa candidature {{!, Election Présidentielle 2012 - France Télévisions |access-date=18 November 2011 |archive-date=14 April 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120414150338weblink |url-status=dead }}File:Eva Joly - Grenoble 2012 (cropped).jpg|Europe Écologie–The Greens: MEP and former magistrate Eva JolyWEB,weblink News, AlertNet, 29 September 2011, File:Portrait 3 - Flickr - dupontaignan (cropped).jpg|Arise the Republic: Mayor of Yerres and MP Nicolas Dupont-Aignan"Nicolas Dupont-Aignan, candidate in 2012"- Le Figaro (21 November 2010)File:Philippe Poutou 2011.jpg|New Anticapitalist Party: Philippe PoutouWEB,weblink NPA : Philippe Poutou, un ouvrier pugnace pour succéder à Besancenot, 25 June 2011, 29 March 2020,weblink dead, File:Nathalie Arthaud.png|Workers' Struggle: Nathalie ArthaudFile:Jacques-Cheminade 2.jpg|Solidarity and Progress: Jacques Cheminade

Campaign

The official campaign began on 20 March, but in the wake of the shooting at the Ozar Hatorah day school in Toulouse the two leading candidates, Hollande and Sarkozy, suspended their campaigns.WEB,weblinkweblink" title="archive.today/20120319171823weblink">weblink dead, 19 March 2012, Fusillade de Toulouse : pour le PS, "la campagne est suspendue", Le Monde, 19 March 2012, fr, Although Jean-Luc Mélenchon argued that to continue with the campaign was "an act of moral, emotional and intellectual resistance."WEB,weblink Poursuivre la campagne, "un acte de résistance" pour Mélenchon, fr, In some parts of the media, Sarkozy and Le Pen were also criticised for misusing the Midi-Pyrénées shootings as campaign fodder against "radical Islam."WEB,weblink Greek unrest over pensioner suicide, Al Jazeera English, 6 May 2012, The following is a brief overview of the campaign adapted from information in Le Monde."Retour sur la campagne : la sélection du service politique du "Monde"", Le Monde, 21 April 2012

François Hollande

(File:Hollande 089 (cropped).JPG|thumb|left|Hollande campaigning)François Hollande, the candidate of the Socialist Party and the Radical Party of the Left, topped the opinion polls throughout the campaign. He emphasised his promise to be a "normal" president, in contrast to Nicolas Sarkozy's sometimes controversial presidential style. He aimed to resorb France's national debt by 2017, notably by cancelling tax cuts for the wealthy and tax exemptions introduced by President Sarkozy. Income tax would be raised to 75% for incomes beyond one million euros; the retirement age would be brought back to 60 (with a full pension) for persons who have worked 42 years; 60 000 jobs cut by Nicolas Sarkozy in public education would be recreated. Homosexual couples would have the right to marry and adopt. Residents without European Union passports would be given the right to vote in local elections after five years of legal residency. On housing, he has promised to regulate rises in rent; to use punitive measures to compel towns and cities to apply the 2000 Law on Solidarity and Urban Renewal ((:fr:Loi relative à la solidarité et au renouvellement urbains|French article on the law)), which mandates the providing of social housing; and to provide public lands for the building of social housing. Hollande won the election, finishing first on the first balloting of ten candidates in April with 28.63% of the vote, and again finishing first on the runoff ballot between himself and Sarkozy with 51.64% against Sarkozy's 48.36%.WEB,weblink Résultats de l'élection présidentielle 2012, Ministère de, l'Intérieur, Interieur.gouv.fr, 11 November 2021,

Nicolas Sarkozy

Nicolas Sarkozy, the incumbent president and candidate of the Union for a Popular Movement, was aiming for a second and last term in office. He was consistently second in opinion polls throughout the campaign, behind François Hollande. His reforms during his first term included a reform of universities, and of the retirement age; a reform enabling citizens to query the constitutionality of laws; and a reduction in the number of public sector employees. He argued that his reforms had helped steer France through a period of economic crisis.File:Meeting Sarkozy, place de la Concorde, 15 avril 2012 (3).jpg|thumb|right|Sarkozy rally at Place de la ConcordePlace de la ConcordeSarkozy's campaign pledges for his potential second term are described by Le Monde as "anchored on the right". He has promised to reduce legal immigration by 50%; threatened to withdraw France from the Schengen Area unless it were revised to enable stricter border controls; promised to compel beneficiaries of the Revenu de solidarité active to accept certain jobs, in exchange for support in finding them; and opposed Hollande's proposals in favour of gay marriage and voting rights for foreign residents in local elections. He has also promised more frequent referendums, for citizens to be consulted on major issues.Sarkozy admitted during the campaign that he did not visit Fukushima while in Japan after the previous year's earthquake and tsunami, despite having previously said he had done so.NEWS,weblink France's Nicolas Sarkozy admits Fukushima nuclear gaffe, BBC News, BBC, 13 April 2012, 13 April 2012,

Marine Le Pen

(File:Meeting 1er mai 2012 Front National, Paris (15) (cropped).jpg|thumb|right|Le Pen campaigning)Marine Le Pen is the candidate of the National Front, succeeding her father Jean-Marie Le Pen, who was a candidate in five presidential elections. Aiming to reach the second round, as her father had done in 2002, she also attempted to provide a different image of the party, avoiding the controversial statements previously made by her father. She has advocated "national preference" for French citizens (over foreign residents) for access to jobs and social services, and a form of protectionism, as well as withdrawing from the euro and the European Union. She has advocated reducing legal immigration by 95%, abolishing the right to family reunification, and reinstating the death penalty, abolished in 1981 by then president François Mitterrand. She held the third place in opinion polls for much of the campaign, occasionally rising into first and second place in 2011 or dipping to fourth behind Jean-Luc Mélenchon, but remained consistently behind Hollande and Sarkozy by 2012. She finished the 2012 balloting with 17.90% of the vote tally, placing her third in the final results.

Jean-Luc Mélenchon

(File:Front de Gauche - Fête de l'Humanité 2012 - 002 (cropped).jpg|thumb|right|Mélenchon campaigning)Jean-Luc Mélenchon is the candidate of the Left Front, which includes in particular the French Communist Party and the Left Party. (He is a member of the latter.) He has been described as the surprise or revelation of the campaign, with his level of support in opinion polls rising from 5% in October 2011 to around 15% (and sometimes up to 17%) by the end of the campaign. He finished in the first round of balloting with 11.10% of the national electorate, placing him fourth in the field of 10 candidatess. He inaugurated the practice of giant open-air meetings, which the two leading candidates then adopted in turn. A former French teacher, he was noted for his eloquent style and oratory, but also for his argumentative relationship with journalists, and occasional insults; he notably described Marine Le Pen as "half-demented". He proposed raising the minimum wage to €1,700; setting a maximum wage differential of 1 to 20 in all businesses, so that employers wishing to increase their own salaries would also have to increase those of their employees; setting social and environmental norms which businesses would have to respect in order to receive public subsidies; supporting social enterprises through government procurement; taxing imports which do not meet certain social and environmental norms; and reestablishing 60 as the legal retirement age with a full pension. There would be an "ecological planification" towards a green, sustainable economy, backed by a "green rule" (règle verte) to be inscribed in the Constitution. On tax, he has proposed a progressive taxation, with higher taxes on the wealthy and a 100% tax rate beyond an income of €360,000 (thereby creating a maximum wage); expatriate French nationals established in a country with a lower tax rate than in France would pay the difference in tax in France. Businesses creating jobs, paying higher wages and/or providing training would receive tax cuts. Healthcare costs would be fully reimbursed by the state, and the right to die would be recognised. The right to abortion would be secured through inclusion in the Constitution. Homosexual couples would have the right to marry and adopt. Naturalisation of foreign residents would be facilitated, and foreign residents would have the right to vote in local elections. A constitutional convention would be assembled, with an aim in particular to increase the prerogatives of Parliament and diminish the powers of the President; all elections would be based on proportional representation, with gender parity.

François Bayrou

(File:Francois Bayrou-IMG 4432 (cropped).JPG|thumb|left|Bayrou campaigning)François Bayrou was the candidate of the Democratic Movement, which he founded in 2007. He is one of only two candidates to stand in both the 2007 and 2012 elections (the other being Nicolas Sarkozy); he obtained 18.57% of the vote in 2007, finishing third. In the 2012 election he received 9.13% of the vote in the first round of balloting, finishing fifth. He stands for an independent centre in politics, which he has sought to distinguish clearly both from the left and the right. Describing France as being "in a critical state", he has focused on reducing the country's national debt, through a public spending freeze, cuts to tax exemptions, and a raise in taxes (Value added tax and taxes on the wealthy). On education, he has proposed that half the time in primary school should be dedicated to the mastering of reading and writing.{{clear}}

Eva Joly

(File:Eva Joly (6916945837) (cropped).jpg|thumb|right|Joly campaigning)Eva Joly was the candidate of Europe Écologie–The Greens. Before entering politics for this election, she was a known public figure, as the examining magistrate in criminal corruption cases involving powerful companies or individuals – notably the Elf Aquitaine oil company, the Crédit Lyonnais bank or businessman and politician Bernard Tapie. (See: Elf affair (:fr:Affaire Elf|(fr)).) She is also the first foreign-born person to stand for the French presidency; born in Norway, she is a naturalized French citizen. She focused her campaign not only on the environment but also on social issues, describing herself as the representative of the "reasonable" or "realistic" left, and on denouncing discrimination against ethnic and religious minorities. Homosexual couples would be given the right to marry and adopt, and foreign residents would have the right to vote in all elections. She suggested that the "ecological transformation of the economy" would create 600 000 jobs over the next five years. An agreement signed between her party and the Socialist Party contained a clause on the closing of nuclear reactors; in the final stages of the campaign, when François Hollande announced it would not be upheld, she expressed the hope she could still convince him. She also drew attention by accusing Nicolas Sarkozy of having obtained illicit funding for his previous campaign; critics accused her of ignoring the presumption of innocence, and Sarkozy himself replied that he "despised" her accusations. Known for her bright red glasses, which she symbolically switched for bright green ones, she was described by the press as struggling with her campaign, barely reaching 3% in opinion polls.{{clear}}

Nicolas Dupont-Aignan

(File:Discours à l'institut de la justice (cropped).jpg|thumb|left|Dupont-Aignan campaigning)Nicolas Dupont-Aignan, described as an "anti-euro souverainist", is the candidate of Arise the Republic, a party he founded in 2008. He has advocated leaving the euro on grounds of economic well-being, and the European Union "in its current form", which he describes as "already dead" and leading to "economic ruin and social regression". He has called for an "intelligent protectionism", with tariffs on imports that result from "human slavery"; and tax cuts for businesses that reinvest their profits in France. He has described himself as a Gaullist.{{clear}}

Philippe Poutou

(File:Philippe Poutou 12 janvier (cropped).jpg|thumb|right|Poutou campaigning)Philippe Poutou, a worker in a car factory, is the candidate of the New Anticapitalist Party, succeeding Olivier Besancenot. For much of the campaign, he remained little known to the general public; he was described as lacking Besancenot's popularity, charisma and ease with words. Freely admitting that he did not particularly want to be a candidate, and that he did not aim to be elected (particularly as one of his policies was to abolish the function of president, in favour of a fully parliamentary system), he saw his profile and popularity increase somewhat in the late stages of the campaign, when all candidates obtained equal airtime in the media. In particular, his unconventional behaviour drew attention during the television programme Des paroles et des actes (:fr:Des paroles et des actes|(fr)), along with his unusual campaign clips – such as one based on the film The Artist."Et Philippe Poutou creva soudain l'écran...", Le Monde, 12 April 2012"Philippe Poutou est... "The Anticapitaliste"", La Dépêche, 20 April 2012 Like Nathalie Arthaud, his message was that improvements in workers' rights would come through workers' struggles and demands rather than through the ballot box.

Nathalie Arthaud

(File:Arthaud-Laguiller.jpg|thumb|left|Arthaud campaigning)Nathalie Arthaud, a teacher of economics and management in a secondary school, is the candidate of Workers' Struggle. She succeeds famous perennial candidate Arlette Laguiller, who represented the party in six consecutive presidential elections, from 1974 to 2007. A Trotskyist, she has described herself as the "only communist candidate" in the election. She has stated that she does not aim to be elected, describing elections as "inessential", and considering that workers will obtain new rights only through their struggles rather than through the ballot box.{{clear}}

Jacques Cheminade

Jacques Cheminade is the candidate of his Solidarity and Progress movement, the French branch of the LaRouche movement. Described as a "conspiracy theorist" by the press, he drew some attention with his proposals for an expanded space programme, and stagnated slightly above 0% in the opinion polls.

Second round

(File:François_Hollande_at_a_meeting_during_2012_political_campaign_-_20120429.jpg|thumb|François Hollande at a meeting during 2012 political campaign.)Since the first round there had been a drive to woo far-right votersNEWS, Parussini, Gabriele,weblink subscription, French Candidates Woo Far-Right Voters, Wall Street Journal, 26 April 2012, 25 April 2012, with Sarkozy making immigration a major issue of his campaign and Hollande focusing on the euro-zone crisis and the state of the economy.French Far Right a Challenge for Europe and Sarkozy 23 April 2012 Sarkozy's move to the right in embracing National Front themes such as stricter immigration has drawn criticism from prominent figures from his own party such as former Prime Ministers Dominique de Villepin, Jean-Pierre Raffarin, Alain Juppé and Senators Chantal Jouanno and Jean-René Lecerf.NEWS, Unease grows in Sarkozy party over rightward lurch,weblink Reuters, 29 April 2012, There was more criticism of the German-led austerity measures by Hollande,NEWS, Donahue, Patrick,weblink Europe's Anti-Austerity Calls Mount as Elections Near, Bloomberg, 6 May 2012, 30 April 2012, while he also responded to Sarkozy's words at a rally in Toulouse saying that "without borders there is no nation, there is no Republic, there is no civilisation. We are not superior to others but we are different." In turn Hollande told a bigger rally in Paris that "I want victory, but not at any price, not at the price of caricature and lies. I want to win over the men and women who are angry, a hundred times yes, but compromise myself? A thousand times no."WEB,weblink French presidential hopefuls in final battle, Al Jazeera English, 6 May 2012, Sarkozy reiterated threats to withdraw from the Schengen Agreement if there was no tightening of border controls. He also said that there would be a presumption of self-defense when police are involved in the killing of suspects and criticised the EU's lack of mention of Europe's Christian roots in its constitution. Many of the issues were similar to that of the National Front, from which Sarkozy's UMP gained votes between the 2002 and 2007 election. He further spoke "to those French who stay home, don't complain when Francois Hollande is elected and regularizes all illegal immigrants and lets foreigners vote."NEWS, Viscusi, Gregory,weblink Sarkozy Win Rests With Anti-Europe Voters in Towns Like Le Hamel, Bloomberg, 29 April 2012, 6 May 2012, Le Pen stated she would submit a blank ballot in the run-off, calling on her supporters to make their own choices.NEWS, Gavin Hewitt,weblink France election: Le Pen 'to cast blank vote' in run-off, BBC, 1 May 2012, 6 May 2012, Bayrou announced on 3 May that he would vote for Hollande.WEB,weblink Surprise backing for Hollande from centrist Bayrou in presidential run-off with Sarkozy – France – RFI, 6 May 2012, German Chancellor Angela Merkel also said she saw nothing "normal" in Hollande, despite his attempts to portray himself as such; instead she supported Sarkozy's campaign.WEB, Andrew Simmons,weblink France debate: verbal fusion and political divide | Al Jazeera Blogs, Blogs.aljazeera.com, 28 April 2012, 6 May 2012, Campaigning officially ended on 4 May.WEB, Cajsa Wikstrom,weblink French election campaigning closes – Europe, Al Jazeera English, 4 October 2011, 6 May 2012, In the last government bond sale before the election, the previously rising yields fell slightly, while the amount sold was marginally lower than expected.NEWS, Deen, Mark,weblink French Borrowing Costs Drop at Last Bond Sale Before Vote, Bloomberg, 30 April 2012, 6 May 2012,

International effect

The campaign has led to a "certain degree of gridlock in EU's corridors of power". It's unclear who will be the head of the Euro Group, who will join the Executive Board of the European Central Bank (ECB) and who will lead the European Stability Mechanism (ESM).WEB,weblink Gridlock in EU's corridors, Europe Online Magazine, 4 May 2012,

Endorsements

In the days before the election, editorials in the main newspapers expressed opinions about the two candidates. Le Monde did not explicitly support one or the other, but wrote that Hollande "has confirmed, between the two rounds, his consistency, albeit without addressing the vagueness of some of his own proposals", while Sarkozy "has demonstrated his inconsistency, first running after the National Front, crossing the red line which had been set at the turn of the 1980s, and respected since then in the ranks of the republican right, before moving back towards the centre to avoid a breakdown with his own side"."Editorial : "Vivre ensemble"", Le Monde, 4 May 2012 Libération supported Hollande:"Votez", Libération, 4 May 2012{{blockquote|On the right, Nicolas Sarkozy has kept up a strategy of tension, leading his side into a transgression of its founding values. Whatever the outcome of the vote, the political landscape will remain, as a consequence, marked by a lasting and dangerous change. On the left, François Hollande has demonstrated that another vision of politics, another way of conceiving the State, another European politics are not only possible but within sight. And that, to finish, justice must be the cardinal virtue of societies such as ours, marked by a deep crisis and anger.}}Le Figaro published an editorial in support of Sarkozy."Le destin de la France", Etienne Mougeotte, Le Figaro, 4 May 2012Of the candidates who went out in the first round, Bayrou, Joly and Cheminade all explicitly declared their support for Hollande in the second round, while Mélenchon and Poutou implicitly endorsed a vote for Hollande by urging their supporters to vote against Sarkozy. Dupont-Aignan backed Sarkozy, while Le Pen and Arthaud declined to support either candidate.

Debates

There was one televised debate between Hollande and Sarkozy, although Sarkozy said he would prefer three,WEB,weblink Hollande rejects Sarkozy challenge to hold three TV debates, NTN24.com, 22 April 2012, 26 April 2012,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20120430053618weblink">weblink 30 April 2012, dead, an idea Hollande rejected. This took place on 2 May.WEB,weblink Sarkozy looks to TV debates to snatch election victory, France 24, 26 April 2012, Hollande accused Sarkozy of dividing the French and failing to lower unemployment. Hollande promised to be a president for social justice, economic recovery and national unity. Sarkozy was said to have told Hollande that his lack of experience in national government made him unfit for the task of leading the world's fifth-largest economy in a crisis.WEB,weblink Sarkozy fails to land knockout punch in testy TV duel, Europe Online Magazine, 3 May 2012,

Opinion polls

First round

(File:Opinion polling for the French presidential election, 2012.png)

Second round

(File:Opinion polling for the French presidential election, 2012 Hollande–Sarkozy.png)French law sets a blackout of the release of exit polls until the last polling station is closed at 20:00, with fines of up to €75,000. However, the result was leaked on Twitter, circumventing the law with code names: "Flanby" for Hollande, "le (wikt:nain|nain)" (midget) for Sarkozy, Titanic for Marine Le Pen, or Tomate for Mélenchon, as well as other humorous names and metaphors were also used such as Amsterdam (for Hollande), Budapest (for Sarkozy, who has Hungarian heritage), Berlin (for Le Pen, due to the Nazi past of Germany) and Moscow (for Mélenchon, due to the Communist past of Russia). The hashtag #RadioLondres was used as it recalls the coded messages from World War II sent by Radio Londres.WEB,weblink Nouvelobs, "Radio Londres": quand Twitter détourne la loi électorale avec humour, Leplus.nouvelobs.com, 22 April 2012, EU-based media outlets not subject to the French blackout law reported early exit poll results before closure of the polls, in both rounds of the election.WEB,weblink Francia, François Hollande è il nuovo presidente, 6 May 2012, la Repubblica, it, France, François Hollande is the new president, (Content and title since updated).WEB,weblink François Hollande élu Président de la République, Le Soir, Belgium, fr, 6 May 2012, François Hollande elected President of the Republic, 6 May 2012, 6 May 2012,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20120506181937weblink">weblink dead, NEWS,weblink Ban on French election exit polls ignored as digital media knows no frontiers – The Irish Times – Thu, Apr 26, 2012, The Irish Times, 26 April 2012, 16 April 2020, 3 May 2012,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20120503154804weblink">weblink dead, Olivier Cimelière reported that some people saw a risk of manipulating future elections.WEB,weblink Nouvelobs, Cheating or true democratical challenge?, Leplus.nouvelobs.com, 22 April 2012,

Results

File:2012 French presidential election - First round - Majority vote (Metropolitan France, communes).svg|right|225px|thumb|Results by communecommuneFrançois Hollande received 51.64% of the votes, while Nicolas Sarkozy secured 48.36% of the votes in the second round.WEB,weblink Résultats de l'élection présidentielle 2012, Elections.interieur.gouv.fr, 7 May 2012, Sarkozy became the first one-term president since Valéry Giscard d'Estaing lost to François Mitterrand in 1981.{{Election resultsFrançois Hollande>party1=Socialist Party (France)>votes1=10272705|votes1_2=18000668Nicolas Sarkozy>party2=Union for a Popular Movementvotes2_2=16860685Marine Le Pen>party3=National Rally>votes3=6421426Jean-Luc Mélenchon>party4=Left Front (France)>votes4=3984822François Bayrou>party5=Democratic Movement (France)>votes5=3275122Eva Joly>party6=Europe Ecology – The Greens|votes6=828345Nicolas Dupont-Aignan>party7=Debout la France>votes7=643907Philippe Poutou>party8=New Anticapitalist Party|votes8=411160Nathalie Arthaud>party9=Lutte Ouvrière>votes9=202548Jacques Cheminade>party10=Solidarity and Progress|votes10=89545invalid2=2154956electorate2=46066307|source=Constitutional Council (First round {{dot}} Second round)}}

First round

Tables{| class"wikitable sortable collapsible collapsed tpl-blanktable" style"text-align:left; font-size:95%; line-height:20px;"

Results by department! width="200" rowspan="3"| Department! width="110" colspan="2"| François Hollande! width="110" colspan="2"| Nicolas Sarkozy! width="110" colspan="2"| Marine Le Pen! width="110" colspan="2"| Jean-Luc Mélenchon! width="110" colspan="2"| François Bayrou! width="110" colspan="2"| Eva Joly! width="110" colspan="2"| Nicolas Dupont-Aignan! width="110" colspan="2"| Philippe Poutou! width="110" colspan="2"| Nathalie Arthaud! width="110" colspan="2"| Jacques Cheminade! colspan="2" style="background:{{party color|Socialist Party (France)}};"|! colspan="2" style="background:{{party color|Union for a Popular Movement}};"|! colspan="2" style="background:{{party color|National Front (France)}};"|! colspan="2" style="background:{{party color|Left Front (France)}};"|! colspan="2" style="background:{{party color|Democratic Movement (France)}};"|! colspan="2" style="background:{{party color|Europe Ecology – The Greens}};"|! colspan="2" style="background:{{party color|Debout la République}};"|! colspan="2" style="background:{{party color|New Anticapitalist Party}};"|! colspan="2" style="background:{{party color|Workers' Struggle}};"|! colspan="2" style="background:{{party color|Solidarity and Progress}};"|! Votes! %! Votes! %! Votes! %! Votes! %! Votes! %! Votes! %! Votes! %! Votes! %! Votes! %!Votes! %Ain>|73,096 97,722 30.466,540|30,898|32,650|7,268|7,208|3,323|1,794|860|0.3Aisne> 80,751 27.172,090|78,452|30,360|19,895|3,455|5,853|3,860|2,490|738|0.2Allier> 61,131 29.749,477|37,736|27,969|17,814|3,232|4,068|2,584|1,482|457|0.2Alpes-de-Haute-Provence>|24,551 25,668 25.520,875|15,269|7,483|2,933|1,845|1,394|487|283|0.3Hautes-Alpes>|21,248 22,655 26.115,359|12,175|8,559|3,147|1,782|1,152|488|212|0.2Alpes-Maritimes>|111,990 216,738 37.2136,982|49,493|38,980|12,556|9,241|4,048|1,576|1,238|0.2Ardèche> 52,156 26.047,687|40,216|28,247|18,373|5,621|3,890|2,750|1,257|521|0.3Ardennes (department)>Ardennes style="background:#FFB5C8;"| 44,441 28.937,524|37,628|14,260|11,551|1,868|2,787|1,981|1,185|366|0.2Ariège (department)>Ariège style="background:#FFB5C8;"| 33,003 34.417,979|16,125|16,197|6,411|2,742|1,446|1,396|528|221|0.2Aube>|36,967 49,196 30.340,740|12,860|13,575|2,294|3,524|1,632|990|407|0.3Aude> 65,783 30.446,801|50,234|28,456|13,076|4,516|3,184|2,724|1,116|458|0.2Aveyron> 53,493 29.446,351|25,619|22,282|22,809|4,243|3,095|2,417|969|435|0.2Bouches-du-Rhône>|255,052 286,175 27.5243,348|139,719|66,082|21,977|14,087|8,293|3,641|2,249|0.2Calvados (department)>Calvados style="background:#FFB5C8;"| 117,773 29.3109,745|65,126|42,396|40,562|8,569|8,227|5,385|2,641|1,008|0.3Cantal> 30,353 30.828,151|14,877|8,836|10,980|1,534|1,630|1,218|587|240|0.2Charente> 68,691 32.848,291|37,121|23,707|18,461|3,843|4,278|3,084|1,460|523|0.2Charente-Maritime> 107,821 28.5106,431|66,076|39,313|34,381|8,378|7,900|5,392|2,161|888|0.2Cher (department)>Cher style="background:#FFB5C8;"| 48,608 26.845,331|35,825|25,079|16,048|2,861|3,825|2,218|1,387|433|0.2Corrèze> 67,070 43.033,706|20,784|16,462|10,824|2,155|2,577|1,581|659|277|0.2Corse-du-Sud>|16,540 23,623 31.819,081|7,191|4,069|1,658|797|873|220|163|0.2Haute-Corse>|22,489 26,869 31.120,128|8,643|3,981|2,020|930|1,001|282|174|0.2Côte-d'Or>|80,321 82,588 28.654,472|27,496|27,086|6,073|5,640|3,070|1,631|694|0.2Côtes-d'Armor> 125,333 33.090,555|51,552|46,303|40,240|10,545|6,494|5,054|2,552|909|0.2Creuse> 26,447 34.017,280|12,651|10,117|6,476|1,369|1,502|1,156|557|195|0.3Dordogne> 83,050 32.159,347|44,035|35,489|20,898|5,525|4,847|3,533|1,480|610|0.2Doubs>|76,592 83,036 28.555,921|31,936|25,639|6,847|5,364|3,445|1,882|750|0.3Drôme>|72,207 75,291 26.160,424|34,877|25,610|8,263|5,578|3,187|2,057|759|0.3Eure>|82,464 92,910 27.876,104|34,572|28,144|5,544|7,074|4,584|2,189|890|0.3Eure-et-Loir>|60,882 69,591 29.449,067|21,230|21,842|3,788|5,307|2,899|1,587|622|0.3Finistère> 188,720 33.7136,994|67,101|64,505|63,121|16,536|9,944|8,273|3,347|1,531|0.3Gard>|100,778| 103,927 106,646 25.555,731|28,893|8,855|6,087|4,215|1,946|948|0.2Haute-Garonne> 227,695 32.8158,407|106,161|92,798|64,648|21,069|10,601|7,672|2,839|1,703|0.2Gers> 38,446 31.929,133|19,190|14,558|12,003|2,715|2,191|1,486|646|298|0.2Gironde> 260,043 31.8203,396|127,811|96,165|79,277|19,940|13,082|13,626|3,671|1,895|0.2Hérault> 160,931 26.7152,614|134,343|80,036|41,351|15,223|8,462|6,221|2,397|1,366|0.2Ille-et-Vilaine> 183,935 31.8150,685|71,727|59,901|71,491|18,367|10,601|7,066|3,876|1,377|0.2Indre> 41,505 29.933,564|27,164|15,645|12,473|2,015|3,014|1,985|1,190|393|0.3Indre-et-Loire>|94,210 94,680 28.253,586|36,657|34,420|7,488|6,738|4,303|2,272|901|0.3Isère> 185,538 27.8166,290|126,377|82,657|60,608|20,189|12,658|6,846|3,450|1,726|0.3Jura (department)>Jura37,910 39,808 25.831,458|19,338|14,819|3,691|3,532|2,028|1,084|425|0.3Landes (department)>Landes style="background:#FFB5C8;"| 79,861 32.859,887|34,381|30,508|25,437|4,466|4,008|3,605|1,161|516|0.2Loir-et-Cher>|49,347 55,944 28.441,190|19,437|19,256|3,418|4,213|2,594|1,384|518|0.3Loire (department)>Loire style="background:#FFB5C8;"| 109,122 26.5103,410|88,877|46,104|40,209|8,090|8,705|4,464|2,503|939|0.2Haute-Loire> 38,253 26.435,438|29,600|16,214|16,212|3,041|3,021|1,931|1,067|322|0.2Loire-Atlantique> 245,708 31.8201,671|94,249|90,140|87,453|24,410|14,238|9,635|4,458|1,760|0.2Loiret>|90,617 104,350 29.373,264|33,923|33,133|6,744|7,512|3,610|2,007|885|0.2Lot (department)>Lot style="background:#FFB5C8;"| 39,369 34.524,447|15,376|16,400|10,648|3,046|2,212|1,650|623|299|0.3Lot-et-Garonne> 52,893 26.949,768|42,080|22,966|17,394|3,775|3,522|2,699|974|461|0.2Lozère>|12,579 13,885 27.88,650|6,208|5,505|1,307|843|647|263|119|0.2Maine-et-Loire>|123,534 136,420 29.963,252|42,601|58,196|10,737|10,087|6,338|3,426|1,182|0.3Manche>|82,773 88,234 28.850,927|30,167|34,272|5,601|6,936|4,131|2,206|882|0.3Marne (department)>Marne71,432 88,707 29.966,640|25,292|28,210|4,482|6,029|3,534|1,949|712|0.2Haute-Marne>|25,970 30,604 28.027,624|9,720|8,712|1,506|2,637|1,455|860|265|0.2Mayenne>|47,146 55,945 30.726,930|15,136|25,118|3,864|3,897|2,392|1,415|428|0.2Meurthe-et-Moselle> |108,870 27.994,415|82,538|47,042|33,871|7,058|7,447|4,988|2,582|1,092|0.3Meuse (department)>Meuse26,313 29,863 26.629,038|9,951|10,375|1,794|2,299|1,688|789|344|0.3Morbihan> 130,453 28.3129,838|71,715|47,220|50,050|12,948|8,548|6,300|2,818|1,268|0.3Moselle (department)>Moselle140,323 148,328 25.9141,477|54,455|53,160|9,875|10,658|7,924|4,350|1,522|0.3Nièvre> 42,631 32.629,400|25,565|15,601|9,746|2,143|2,563|1,675|934|338|0.3Nord (French department)>Nord style="background:#FFB5C8;"| 383,471 28.0338,714|300,362|173,037|102,511|23,976|21,160|15,138|9,545|3,185|0.2Oise>|108,574 115,926 26.6109,339|44,057|33,160|6,598|8,505|5,338|3,391|1,081|0.2Orne>|42,159 51,498 29.634,757|15,501|18,326|3,109|4,173|2,515|1,294|422|0.2Pas-de-Calais> 249,971 29.4185,632|216,753|97,974|54,354|10,315|14,122|10,948|7,246|1,824|0.2Puy-de-Dôme> 122,244 33.179,124|57,555|51,691|36,771|7,549|6,555|4,595|2,372|988|0.3Pyrénées-Atlantiques> 117,823 29.992,967|47,844|46,749|61,681|11,345|5,728|6,812|1,826|882|0.2Hautes-Pyrénées> 47,983 33.229,512|21,580|21,934|15,265|3,007|2,376|1,967|780|300|0.2Pyrénées-Orientales> 68,593 26.066,870|64,007|33,739|16,608|5,564|3,652|3,265|1,305|591|0.2Bas-Rhin>|114,702 196,968 33.6124,264|42,302|69,940|16,188|10,141|5,993|3,779|1,655|0.3Haut-Rhin>|76,580 129,349 31.994,988|30,076|46,176|10,980|8,508|4,824|2,608|1,322|0.3Rhône (department)>Rhône237,779 271,922 30.8133,322|94,876|91,042|25,611|15,203|7,412|4,220|2,264|0.3Haute-Saône> 38,661 26.436,967|36,807|14,125|11,147|2,315|2,982|1,999|1,126|407|0.3Saône-et-Loire> 93,198 28.784,499|65,054|34,548|28,683|5,435|6,588|3,971|2,048|802|0.2Sarthe> 91,722 28.186,174|62,516|35,143|29,802|6,153|7,012|4,379|2,452|749|0.2Savoie>|57,469 69,544 28.645,993|27,875|24,034|8,313|5,120|2,890|1,213|664|0.3Haute-Savoie>|82,482 136,946 34.166,583|37,117|47,547|14,446|9,345|4,514|1,793|1,242|0.3Paris> 345,635 34.8319,482|61,503|110,101|92,664|41,495|9,959|6,644|2,719|2,272|0.2Seine-Maritime> 204,448 29.4174,024|131,416|91,759|54,446|11,356|12,445|8,918|4,918|1,671|0.2Seine-et-Marne> 178,537 27.6176,116|126,889|71,097|55,187|12,684|14,055|6,584|2,995|1,654|0.3Yvelines>|196,485 246,328 34.289,491|65,520|80,848|17,974|12,434|5,720|2,505|2,008|0.3Deux-Sèvres> 73,911 33.355,462|30,077|22,709|24,395|4,480|4,952|3,550|1,612|567|0.3Somme (department)>Somme style="background:#FFB5C8;"| 93,379 28.478,680|78,250|36,213|24,066|4,031|6,653|4,222|2,917|726|0.2Tarn (department)>Tarn style="background:#FFB5C8;"| 72,647 30.755,099|44,806|28,800|21,724|5,064|3,850|2,962|1,212|550|0.2Tarn-et-Garonne> 40,297 27.636,666|32,228|16,313|12,075|2,867|2,564|1,769|698|367|0.3Var (department)>Var118,023 209,233 34.8149,187|54,553|40,004|11,334|9,809|5,239|2,094|1,254|0.2Vaucluse>|69,878 85,898 27.584,585|34,879|21,070|7,062|4,679|2,981|1,207|650|0.2Vendée>|101,079 133,985 32.961,859|34,471|49,402|7,652|9,486|5,893|2,584|973|0.2Vienne (department)>Vienne style="background:#FFB5C8;"| 78,591 32.060,188|40,321|27,037|23,565|5,335|5,038|3,321|1,741|553|0.2Haute-Vienne> 78,249 35.943,225|35,821|31,304|17,189|3,925|3,634|2,641|1,435|516|0.2Vosges (department)>Vosges56,495 57,964 25.355,339|22,162|21,516|4,026|5,450|3,573|1,716|661|0.3Yonne>|46,667 53,719 27.646,057|19,540|16,472|3,426|4,310|2,477|1,324|484|0.2Territoire de Belfort> 19,484 26.017,891|17,786|8,547|6,630|1,516|1,343|988|523|215|0.3Essonne> 181,506 30.4152,079|90,760|73,240|55,738|14,027|20,392|5,591|2,462|1,456|0.2Hauts-de-Seine>|221,233 256,570 35.062,447|75,911|78,397|20,086|9,851|5,031|2,187|1,939|0.3Seine-Saint-Denis> 206,537 38.7104,010|72,335|90,710|32,661|11,781|6,978|4,936|2,708|1,259|0.2Val-de-Marne> 192,781 32.9155,552|69,399|81,950|51,892|15,392|9,735|4,946|2,217|1,498|0.3Val-d'Oise> 172,658 32.4139,863|83,102|63,679|44,683|10,907|9,049|5,109|2,340|1,325|0.2 class="sortbottom"French Guiana> 15,943 42.610,174|3,920|2,952|2,329|843|416|479|208|148|0.4French Polynesia>|29,130 40,611 45.25,151|2,492|5,139|3,392|2,484|532|510|378|0.4Guadeloupe> 82,735 57.033,973|7,486|7,806|6,861|2,134|1,237|1,151|1,335|441|0.3Martinique> 76,034 52.038,443|6,960|8,600|8,681|2,275|1,563|1,712|1,442|560|0.4Mayotte>|13,152 17,536 48.7996|944|1,505|789|395|299|192|175|0.5New Caledonia>|22,235 44,302 49.610,409|2,927|4,579|2,336|833|874|485|279|0.3Réunion> 194,009 53.365,377|37,549|24,503|24,853|7,737|3,631|3,170|2,190|1,066|0.3Saint Martin (island)>Saint Martin/Saint Barthélemy2,151 3,504 43.6975|473|473|208|92|85|44|28|0.3Saint Pierre and Miquelon> 888 33.8488|416|399|194|43|64|103|23|13|0.5Wallis and Futuna> 3,093 48.32,414|152|76|410|100|43|42|48|29|0.5 class="sortbottom" style="font-weight:bold; background:#E4E4E4;" Total 10,272,705style="background:#FFB5C8;"|28.63|27.18|17.90|11.10|9.13|2.31|1.79|1.15|0.56|0.25 class="sortbottom" Source: European Election Database {{Webarchiveweblink >date=24 June 2021 }}{| class="wikitable sortable collapsible collapsed tpl-blanktable" style="text-align:left; font-size:95%; line-height:20px;" Results by region! width="200" rowspan="3"| Region! width="110" colspan="2"| FrançoisHollande! width="110" colspan="2"| NicolasSarkozy! width="110" colspan="2"| MarineLe Pen! width="110" colspan="2"| Jean-LucMélenchon! width="110" colspan="2"| FrançoisBayrou! width="110" colspan="2"| EvaJoly! width="110" colspan="2"| NicolasDupont-Aignan! width="110" colspan="2"| PhilippePoutou! width="110" colspan="2"| NathalieArthaud! width="110" colspan="2"| JacquesCheminade! colspan="2" style="background:{{party color|Socialist Party (France)}};"|! colspan="2" style="background:{{party color|Union for a Popular Movement}};"|! colspan="2" style="background:{{party color|National Front (France)}};"|! colspan="2" style="background:{{party color|Left Front (France)}};"|! colspan="2" style="background:{{party color|Democratic Movement (France)}};"|! colspan="2" style="background:{{party color|Europe Écologie–The Greens}};"|! colspan="2" style="background:{{party color|Arise the Republic}};"|! colspan="2" style="background:{{party color|New Anticapitalist Party}};"|! colspan="2" style="background:{{party color|Workers' Struggle}};"|! colspan="2" style="background:{{party color|Solidarity and Progress}};"|! Votes! %! Votes! %! Votes! %! Votes! %! Votes! %! Votes! %! Votes! %! Votes! %! Votes! %! Votes! % Alsace| 191,282| 19.30 326,317 32.92| 219,252| 22.12| 72,378| 7.30| 116,116| 11.71| 27,168| 2.74| 18,649| 1.88| 10,817| 1.09| 6,387| 0.64| 2,977| 0.30 Aquitaine 593,670 31.05| 465,365| 24.34| 296,151| 15.49| 231,877| 12.13| 204,687| 10.71| 45,051| 2.36| 31,187| 1.63| 30,275| 1.58| 9,112| 0.48| 4,364| 0.23 Auvergne 251,981 30.77| 192,190| 23.47| 139,768| 17.07| 104,710| 12.79| 81,777| 9.99| 15,356| 1.88| 15,274| 1.87| 10,328| 1.26| 5,508| 0.67| 2,007| 0.25 Brittany 628,441 31.74| 508,072| 25.66| 262,095| 13.24| 217,929| 11.36| 224,902| 11.01| 58,396| 2.95| 35,587| 1.80| 26,693| 1.35| 12,593| 0.64| 5,085| 0.26 Burgundy 262,817 27.99| 250,206| 26.65| 191,148| 20.36| 97,185| 10.35| 81,987| 8.73| 17,077| 1.82| 19,101| 2.03| 11,193| 1.19| 5,937| 0.63| 2,318| 0.25 Centre| 385,169| 26.64 403,460 27.90| 280,096| 19.37| 151,971| 10.51| 137,172| 9.49| 26,314| 1.82| 30,609| 2.12| 17,609| 1.22| 9,827| 0.68| 3,752| 0.26 Champagne-Ardenne| 178,810| 24.76 206,031 28.53| 172,632| 23.91| 62,132| 8.60| 62,048| 8.59| 10,150| 1.41| 14,977| 2.07| 8,602| 1.19| 4,984| 0.69| 1,750| 0.24 Corsica| 39,029| 24.28 50,492 31.41| 39,209| 24.39| 15,834| 9.85| 8,050| 5.01| 3,678| 2.29| 1,727| 1.07| 1,874| 1.17| 502| 0.31| 337| 0.21 Franche-Comté| 172,647| 25.89 177,702 26.64| 141,972| 21.29| 73,946| 11.09| 58,235| 8.73| 14,369| 2.15| 13,221| 1.98| 8,460| 1.27| 4,615| 0.69| 1,797| 0.27 Île de France 1,695,372 31.75| 1,550,000| 29.02| 655,926| 12.28| 632,208| 11.84| 492,070| 9.21| 144,346| 2.70| 92,453| 1.73| 44,561| 0.83| 20,133| 0.38| 13,411| 0.25 Languedoc-Roussillon 408,664 26.34| 384,097| 24.76| 363,880| 23.45| 204,170| 13.16| 105,433| 6.80| 35,465| 2.29| 22,228| 1.43| 17,072| 1.10| 7,027| 0.45| 3,482| 0.22 Limousin 171,766 38.02| 94,211| 20.85| 69,256| 15.33| 57,883| 12.81| 34,489| 7.63| 7,449| 1.65| 7,713| 1.71| 5,378| 1.19| 2,651| 0.59| 988| 0.22 Lorraine 332,001 25.47| 330,570| 25.36| 308,392| 23.66| 133,610| 10.25| 118,922| 9.12| 22,753| 1.75| 25,854| 1.98| 18,173| 1.39| 9,437| 0.72| 3,619| 0.28 Lower Normandy| 242,705| 27.54 249,477 28.31| 150,810| 17.11| 88,064| 9.99| 93,160| 10.57| 17,279| 1.96| 19,336| 2.19| 12,031| 1.37| 6,141| 0.70| 2,312| 0.26 Midi-Pyrénées 552,933 31.90| 397,594| 22.94| 281,085| 16.22| 229,282| 13.23| 165,583| 9.55| 44,753| 2.58| 28,335| 1.63| 21,319| 1.23| 8,295| 0.48| 4,173| 0.24 Nord-Pas-de-Calais 633,442 28.53| 524,346| 23.62| 517,115| 23.29| 271,011| 12.21| 156,865| 7.07| 34,291| 1.54| 35,282| 1.59| 26,086| 1.17| 16,791| 0.76| 5,009| 0.23 Pays de la Loire| 609,189| 28.40 614,195 28.63| 308,806| 14.39| 217,491| 10.14| 249,971| 11.65| 52,816| 2.46| 44,720| 2.08| 28,637| 1.33| 14,335| 0.67| 5,092| 0.24 Picardy 282,704 26.59| 266,696| 25.09| 266,041| 25.03| 110,630| 10.41| 77,121| 7.25| 14,084| 1.32| 21,011| 1.98| 13,420| 1.26| 8,798| 0.83| 2,545| 0.24 Poitou-Charentes 329,014 31.17| 270,372| 25.61| 173,595| 16.45| 112,766| 10.68| 100,802| 9.55| 22,036| 2.09| 22,168| 2.10| 15,347| 1.45| 6,974| 0.66| 2,531| 0.24 Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur| 600,742| 22.05 846,367 31.06| 650,336| 23.87| 306,088| 11.23| 182,178| 6.69| 59,009| 2.17| 41,443| 1.52| 23,107| 0.85| 9,493| 0.35| 5,886| 0.22 Rhône-Alpes| 869,849| 25.45 968,812 28.35| 628,332| 18.38| 382,651| 11.20| 340,073| 9.95| 97,801| 2.86| 67,707| 1.98| 35,386| 1.04| 18,287| 0.53| 8,975| 0.26 Upper Normandy 286,912 27.86| 266,934| 25.92| 207,520| 20.15| 126,331| 12.27| 82,590| 8.02| 16,900| 1.64| 19,519| 1.90| 13,502| 1.31| 7,107| 0.69| 2,561| 0.25 French Guiana 15,943 42.61| 10,174| 27.20| 3,920| 10.48| 2,952| 7.89| 2,329| 6.23| 843| 2.25| 416| 1.11| 479| 1.28| 208| 0.56| 148| 0.40 French Polynesia| 29,130| 32.43 40,611 45.21| 5,151| 5.73| 2,492| 2.77| 5,139| 5.72| 3,392| 3.78| 2,484| 2.77| 532| 0.59| 510| 0.57| 378| 0.42 Guadeloupe 82,735 57.00| 33,973| 23.40| 7,486| 5.16| 7,806| 5.38| 6,861| 4.73| 2,134| 1.47| 1,237| 0.85| 1,151| 0.79| 1,335| 0.92| 441| 0.30 Martinique 76,034 51.98| 38,443| 26.28| 6,960| 4.76| 8,600| 5.88| 8,681| 5.93| 2,275| 1.56| 1,563| 1.07| 1,712| 1.17| 1,442| 0.99| 560| 0.38 Mayotte| 13,152| 36.55 17,536 48.73| 996| 2.77| 944| 2.62| 1,505| 4.18| 789| 2.19| 395| 1.10| 299| 0.83| 192| 0.53| 175| 0.49 New Caledonia| 22,235| 24.91 44,302 49.63| 10,409| 11.66| 2,927| 3.28| 4,579| 5.13| 2,336| 2.62| 833| 0.93| 874| 0.98| 485| 0.54| 279| 0.31 Réunion 194,009 53.29| 65,377| 17.96| 37,549| 10.31| 24,503| 6.73| 24,853| 6.83| 7,737| 2.13| 3,631| 1.00| 3,170| 0.87| 2,190| 0.60| 1,066| 0.29 Saint Barthélemy and Saint Martin| 2,151| 26.78 3,504 43.62| 975| 12.14| 473| 5.89| 473| 5.89| 208| 2.59| 92| 1.15| 85| 1.06| 44| 0.55| 28| 0.35 Saint Pierre and Miquelon 888 33.75| 488| 18.55| 416| 15.81| 399| 15.17| 194| 7.37| 43| 1.63| 64| 2.43| 103| 3.91| 23| 0.87| 13| 0.49 Wallis and Futuna 3,093 48.28| 2,414| 37.68| 152| 2.37| 76| 1.19| 410| 6.40| 100| 1.56| 43| 0.67| 42| 0.66| 48| 0.75| 29| 0.45 style="font-weight:bold; background:#E4E4E4;" Total 10,272,705 28.63| 9,753,629| 27.18| 6,421,426| 17.90| 3,984,822| 11.10| 3,275,122| 9.13| 828,345| 2.31| 643,907| 1.79| 411,160| 1.15| 202,548| 0.56| 89,545| 0.25 Source: European Election Database {{Webarchiveweblink >date=24 June 2021 }}

Second round

(File:2007-2012_French_Presidential_Swing.svg|thumb|right|Second Round 2007-2012 Swing by Departement {{collapsible list#FFF0F0|Swing}}#0000FF|+21% Sarkozy}}#FFD5D5|+2-4% Hollande}}#FFAAAA|+4-6% Hollande}}#FF5555|+6-8% Hollande}}#FF2A2A|+8-10% Hollande}}#D40000|+10-12% Hollande}}#800000|+12-14% Hollande}}#550000|+>14% Hollande}}}})

Tables{| class"wikitable sortable collapsible collapsed tpl-blanktable" style"text-align:left; font-size:95%; line-height:20px;"

Results by department! width="200" rowspan="3"| Department! width="110" colspan="2"| François Hollande! width="110" colspan="2"| Nicolas Sarkozy! colspan="2" style="background:{{party color|Socialist Party (France)}};"|! colspan="2" style="background:{{party color|Union for a Popular Movement}};"|! Votes! %! Votes! %Ain>|131,365 175,706 57.22%Aisne> 147,260 52.40%133,760|47.60%Allier> 111,615 56.89%84,593|43.11%Alpes-de-Haute-Provence> 49,498 51.06%47,444|48.94%Hautes-Alpes> 42,624 50.91%41,098|49.09%Alpes-Maritimes>|203,708 365,813 64.23%Ardèche> 101,526 53.45%88,429|46.55%Ardennes (department)>Ardennesstyle="background:#FFB5C8;"| 75,630 51.89%70,119|48.11%Ariège (department)>Ariègestyle="background:#FFB5C8;"| 59,466 64.69%32,452|35.31%Aube>|65,548 88,210 57.37%Aude> 115,398 56.24%89,793|43.76%Aveyron> 95,297 54.42%79,802|45.58%Bouches-du-Rhône>|474,704 531,652 52.83%Calvados (department)>Calvadosstyle="background:#FFB5C8;"| 205,525 53.11%181,423|46.89%Cantal> 49,543 51.80%46,097|48.20%Charente> 118,100 58.83%82,648|41.17%Charente-Maritime> 188,387 51.57%176,944|48.43%Cher (department)>Cherstyle="background:#FFB5C8;"| 92,857 54.04%78,959|45.96%Corrèze> 98,764 64.86%53,502|35.14%Corse-du-Sud>|30,791 41,834 57.60%Haute-Corse>|39,357 46,965 54.41%Côte-d'Or>|134,929 143,559 51.55%Côtes-d'Armor> 217,604 59.19%150,035|40.81%Creuse> 45,870 61.02%29,306|38.98%Dordogne> 148,011 59.14%102,280|40.86%Doubs>|134,568 145,269 51.91%Drôme>|134,959 139,436 50.82%Eure>|151,327 166,949 52.45%Eure-et-Loir>|105,676 121,452 53.47%Finistère> 319,304 58.87%223,115|41.13%Gard>|193,487 202,995 51.20%Haute-Garonne> 388,811 58.78%272,683|41.22%Gers> 65,605 56.64%50,221|43.36%Gironde> 448,634 56.61%343,866|43.39%Hérault> 296,422 51.31%281,240|48.69%Ille-et-Vilaine> 309,763 55.71%246,303|44.29%Indre> 73,616 55.66%58,643|44.34%Indre-et-Loire> 165,293 51.23%157,374|48.77%Isère> 331,448 52.12%304,429|47.88%Jura (department)>Jura72,321 74,004 50.58%Landes (department)>Landesstyle="background:#FFB5C8;"| 134,872 56.99%101,792|43.01%Loir-et-Cher>|89,182 98,275 52.43%Loire (department)>Loirestyle="background:#FFB5C8;"| 196,522 50.50%192,621|49.50%Haute-Loire> 70,488 51.38%66,703|48.62%Loire-Atlantique> 419,484 56.35%324,893|43.65%Loiret>|156,289 183,671 54.03%Lot (department)>Lotstyle="background:#FFB5C8;"| 67,981 61.89%41,862|38.11%Lot-et-Garonne> 96,766 51.35%91,663|48.65%Lozère>|23,991 24,036 50.05%Maine-et-Loire>|213,611 223,644 51.15%Manche>|147,005 147,590 50.10%Marne (department)>Marne126,155 156,159 55.31%Haute-Marne>|46,965 56,085 54.43%Mayenne>|81,922 92,647 53.07%Meurthe-et-Moselle> 196,628 53.06%173,929|46.94%Meuse (department)>Meuse48,860 56,898 53.80%Morbihan> 229,248 51.73%213,893|48.27%Moselle (department)>Moselle253,371 291,278 53.48%Nièvre> 73,424 58.81%51,421|41.19%Nord (French department)>Nordstyle="background:#FFB5C8;"| 692,273 52.88%616,882|47.12%Oise>|195,701 217,732 52.66%Orne>|77,579 87,087 52.89%Pas-de-Calais> 450,103 56.18%351,015|43.82%Puy-de-Dôme> 212,750 60.46%139,145|39.54%Pyrénées-Atlantiques> 218,964 57.12%164,374|42.88%Hautes-Pyrénées> 86,803 62.47%52,154|37.53%Pyrénées-Orientales> 127,625 50.59%124,668|49.41%Bas-Rhin>|206,891 359,011 63.44%Haut-Rhin>|142,724 246,527 63.33%Rhône (department)>Rhône408,899 443,370 52.02%Haute-Saône>|68,653 69,658 50.36%Saône-et-Loire> 160,751 51.86%149,243|48.14%Sarthe> 162,975 52.67%146,454|47.33%Savoie>|108,691 122,228 52.93%Haute-Savoie>|154,622 232,928 60.10%Paris> 560,461 55.60%447,500|44.40%Seine-Maritime> 366,616 54.94%300,657|45.06%Seine-et-Marne>|315,566 325,147 50.75%Yvelines>|333,057 395,697 54.30%Deux-Sèvres> 122,858 57.31%91,527|42.69%Somme (department)>Sommestyle="background:#FFB5C8;"| 170,529 54.41%142,894|45.59%Tarn (department)>Tarnstyle="background:#FFB5C8;"| 125,132 55.55%100,109|44.45%Tarn-et-Garonne> 71,186 51.25%67,705|48.75%Var (department)>Var217,383 364,467 62.64%Vaucluse>|130,278 168,753 56.43%Vendée>|173,717 217,449 55.59%Vienne (department)>Viennestyle="background:#FFB5C8;"| 134,875 57.15%101,138|42.85%Haute-Vienne> 133,467 63.99%75,095|36.01%Vosges (department)>Vosges105,371 109,404 50.94%Yonne>|86,610 98,122 53.12%Territoire de Belfort> 35,865 50.52%35,121|49.48%Essonne> 317,663 53.43%276,859|46.57%Hauts-de-Seine>|369,128 376,816 50.52%Seine-Saint-Denis> 353,260 65.32%187,562|34.68%Val-de-Marne> 333,347 56.48%256,900|43.52%Val-d'Oise> 289,520 53.91%247,541|46.09%French Guiana> 25,880 62.05%15,830|37.95%French Polynesia>|50,097 57,080 53.26%Guadeloupe> 123,821 71.94%48,292|28.06%Martinique> 114,527 68.43%52,829|31.57%Mayotte>|18,948 19,677 50.94%New Caledonia>|36,239 61,772 63.03%Réunion> 286,109 71.49%114,120|28.51%|3,851 5,641 59.43%Saint Pierre and Miquelon> 2,080 65.31%1,105|34.69% Wallis and Futuna 3,795 56.06%|2,974|43.94% style="font-weight:bold; background:#E4E4E4;"|Total 18,000,668 51.64%| 16,860,685| 48.36%Source: European Election Database {{Webarchiveweblink >date=24 June 2021 }}{| class="wikitable sortable collapsible collapsed tpl-blanktable" style="text-align:left; font-size:95%; line-height:20px;" Results by region! width="200" rowspan="3"| Region! width="110" colspan="2"| François Hollande! width="110" colspan="2"| Nicolas Sarkozy! colspan="2" style="background:{{party color|Socialist Party (France)}};"|! colspan="2" style="background:{{party color|Union for a Popular Movement}};"|! Votes! %! Votes! %|Alsace|349,615|36.60% 605,538 63.40%|Aquitaine 1,047,247 56.57%|803,975|43.43%|Auvergne 444,396 56.91%|336,538|43.09%Brittany (administrative region)>Brittany 1,075,919 56.35%|833,346|43.65%|Burgundy 455,714 50.74%|442,345|49.26%Centre (France)>Centre|682,913|49.44% 698,374 50.56%|Champagne-Ardenne|314,298|45.89% 370,573 54.11%|Corsica|70,148|44.13% 88,799 55.87%|Franche-Comté|311,407|49.01% 324,052 50.99%|Île de France 2,872,002 53.32%|2,514,022|46.68%|Languedoc-Roussillon 756,923 51.16%|722,732|48.84%|Limousin 278,101 63.78%|157,903|36.22%|Lorraine|604,230|48.90% 631,509 51.10%|Lower Normandy 430,109 50.83%|416,100|49.17%|Midi-Pyrénées 960,281 57.94%|696,988|42.06%|Nord-Pas-de-Calais 1,142,376 54.13%|967,897|45.87%|Pays de la Loire 1,051,709 51.13%|1,005,087|48.87%|Picardy513,490 50.95%|494,386|49.05%|Poitou-Charentes 564,220 55.51%|452,257|44.49%|Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur|1,118,195|42.40% 1,519,227 57.60%|Rhône-Alpes 1,568,032 47.99%|1,699,147|52.01%|Upper Normandy 517,943 52.55%|467,606|47.45%|Guadeloupe 123,821 62.05%|15,830|37.95%|Martinique|114,527|46.74% 57,080 53.26%|French Guiana 25,880 71.94%|48,292|28.06%|Réunion 286,109 68.43%|52,829|31.57%|Saint Pierre and Miquelon|2,080|49.06% 19,677 50.94%Saint Barthélemy and Collectivity of Saint Martin>Saint Martin|3,851|36.97% 61,772 63.03%|Mayotte 18,948 71.49%|114,120|28.51%|Wallis and Futuna|3,795|40.57% 5,641 59.43%|French Polynesia 50,097 65.31%|1,105|34.69%|New Caledonia 36,239 56.06%|2,974|43.94%|French overseas voters|206,053|46.94% 232,964 53.06% style="font-weight:bold; background:#E4E4E4;"|Total 18,000,668 51.64%|16,860,685|48.36% Source: European Election Database {{Webarchiveweblink >date=24 June 2021 }}

Reactions

Sarkozy called for UMP to "stay together. We must win the battle of the legislatives" and said that "in this new era, I will remain one of you, but my place will no longer be the same. My engagement with the life of my country will now be different, but time will never strain the bonds between us." Hollande then spoke at a victory rally in Tulle where he said:{{cquote|To those who haven't voted for me, let them know that I hear them, and that I will be president to all. There is one France, united in the same destiny. We will never be apart, how beautiful life is tonight!}}He then travelled to Paris, where supporters of the Socialist Party gathered outside the headquarters.WEB,weblink Hollande wins French presidency – Europe, Al Jazeera English, 4 October 2011, 6 May 2012, He also said that "Europe is watching us. Austerity isn't inevitable. My mission now is to give European construction a growth dimension."NEWS, Fouquet, Helene,weblink Hollande Vows to Fight Austerity After Beating Sarkozy, Bloomberg, 7 May 2012, 7 May 2012,

International Reactions

• {{Flagu|Andorra}} – In electing the President of France, French citizens had also elected one of the two heads of state of Andorra. Prime Minister Antoni Martí congratulated François Hollande, expressing his confidence both in the continuation of the "excellent" relationship between Andorra and France, and in Hollande's awareness of the importance of his role as Co-Prince of Andorra. Jaume Bartumeu, of Andorra's Social Democratic Party (in opposition), described Hollande's victory as "the beginning of the resurgence of social democracy in Europe"."Copríncep Hollande" {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130920083559weblink |date=20 September 2013 }}, Diari Andorra, 7 May 2012"Martí felicita Hollande per la victòria i ofereix la seva col·laboració per continuar estrenyent els lligams" {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140911112600weblink |date=11 September 2014 }}, Diari Andorra, 7 May 2012
• {{Flagu|Belgium}} – Prime Minister Elio Di Rupo welcomed the election of his "friend", adding: "François Hollande's proposals on economic growth [...] will have a positive impact for all Europeans and on European authorities"."Dans le monde, des félicitations plus ou moins chaleureuses", Libération, 8 May 2012
• {{Flagu|Denmark}} – Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt congratulated Hollande for his win.
• {{Flagu|Germany}} – Chancellor Angela Merkel sent her congratulations to Hollande and said that she and Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle "agreed to discuss the kind of growth pact that Hollande has championed."abcnews.go.com {{Dead link|date=September 2019 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}
• {{Flagu|Italy}} – Prime Minister Mario Monti congratulated François Hollande, saying he looked forward to a "close collaboration" within the European framework, the aim of which would be "an ever-more efficient union with economic growth as its objective". He added that the results of the French and Greek elections required thinking about European policies, adding that in his view public spending should be concentrated on "productive investments" and avoid increasing debts.
• {{Flagu|Spain}} – Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy expressed congratulations, saying he looked forward to "fruitful bilateral and Europeans relations" with the new president.
• {{Flagu|United Kingdom}} – Prime Minister David Cameron congratulated François Hollande and said he looked forward to the two countries maintaining their "very close relationship". Opposition Leader Ed Miliband applauded Hollande's "determination to help create a Europe focused on growth and job creation, in a responsible and sustainable manner. [...] We are in great need of this new direction as Europe seeks to escape from austerity. I'm impatient to work with him in the months and years to come".
• {{Flagu|United States}} – President Barack Obama congratulated Hollande for his victory and invited him to the White House.

References

{{Reflist}}

Further reading

• Baujard, Antoinette, et al. "Who's favored by evaluative voting? An experiment conducted during the 2012 French presidential election." Electoral Studies 34 (2014): 131-145. Online
• Beaudonnet, Laurie, and Pavlos Vasilopoulos. "Green parties in hard times: The case of EELV in the 2012 French presidential election." Party Politics 20.2 (2014): 275-285.
• Bélanger, Éric, et al. "Patrimony and French presidential vote choice: Evidence from the 2012 election." French Politics 12.1 (2014): 59-68. Online{{dead link|date=May 2023|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}} Online
• Choi, Yun Son, and William L. Benoit. "A functional analysis of the 2007 and 2012 French Presidential debates." Journal of Intercultural Communication Research 42.3 (2013): 215-227.
• Clift, Ben. "Le changement? French socialism, the 2012 presidential election and the politics of economic credibility amidst the eurozone crisis." Parliamentary affairs 66.1 (2013): 106-123. Online
• Evans, J. and G. Ivaldi, eds. The 2012 French Presidential Elections: The Inevitable Alternation (2013) excerpt
• Nadeau, Richard, and Michael S. Lewis-Beck. "French election theory: Why Sarkozy lost." Parliamentary Affairs 66.1 (2013): 52–68.
• Perrineau, Pascal, ed. The 2012 French Election: How the Electorate Decided (2016) excerpt
• Theviot, Anaïs. "Towards a standardization of campaign strategies dictated by the Obama ‘model’? The case of ‘American-style’ canvassing during the 2012 French presidential election campaign." French Politics 14.2 (2016): 158-177. Online{{dead link|date=May 2023|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}
• Vassallo, Francesca. "The EU discourse in the 2012 French presidential election." French Politics, Culture & Society 30.3 (2012): 79–95.

External links

• weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20120423194115weblink">The Constitutional council's duties relating to the presidential election
• Opinion poll tracker with data
• NSD: European Election Database – France {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170224133032weblink |date=24 February 2017 }} publishes regional level election data; allows for comparisons of election results, 1990–2012
• A clickable map showing elections results by region, department, and commune on the website of L'Humanité

{{French elections}}{{Candidates in the 2012 French presidential election}}