Irish Examiner view: Election veto

Carla Bruni-Sarkozy caresses the brow of her husband, the former French President Nicolas Sarkozy.

The conviction of former French president Nicolas Sarkozy for corruption provokes obvious comparisons with a recent judgement passed on another former president — the one on the far side of the Atlantic.

Tried by a court judge, Sarkozy was sentenced to three years in jail. He is expected to appeal though he is unlikely to spend even a day in jail. French laws allow a one-year prison sentence be served with certain conditions, including the wearing of an electronic bracelet, or limited home confinement. The verdict, however, ends Sarkozy’s ambition to stand in next year’s presidential election. His party struggled to find a credible candidate since Sarkozy’s former prime minister François Fillon was engulfed in scandal during the 2017 race, opening the door for Emmanuel Macron.