Presidential hopefuls stage mass rallies in Paris

Supporters of France’s two main presidential candidates battled it out at separate mass rallies in Paris yesterday, where hopes of victory on left and right warmed windswept flag-waving crowds.

“Those who don’t vote for Nicolas Sarkozy are wrong,” said Michele Chambron, 42, one of thousands waving tricolour flags at the right-wing incumbent’s rally on the vast Place de le Concorde in central Paris.

Thumping dance music echoed across the square where much aristocratic blood was spilled by guillotines during the 1789 revolution, huge television screens broadcasting speeches and Sarkozy’s ‘Strong France’ campaign slogan.