Polls show France faces a cliffhanger vote for presidency

FRANCE’S presidential candidates made their final pushes for votes as polls yesterday pointed to a cliffhanger among the top four hopefuls, led by conservative Nicolas Sarkozy and Socialist Segolene Royal.

Royal took heart from polls showing that millions of voters have not firmly decided whom they will back in Sunday’s first-round vote that will whittle down the field from 12 total candidates to two for a decisive May 6 runoff.

“Everything is open,” Royal told RTL radio. Polls “indicate that there are still 17 million voters who haven’t decided yet.”