Nicolas Sarkozy’s hopes of a political comeback as the saviour of the badly-divided conservative opposition appeared in jeopardy on Saturday, as a key poll showed most voters would prefer his party to field an alternative presidential candidate, reports The Telegraph.
Amid increasing hints that he is preparing a bid to return to the Élysée Palace, a survey showed that most voters would choose Alain Juppé, a former prime minister, as the candidate of Mr Sarkozy’s Union for a Popular Movement (UMP).
The party is being torn apart by infighting, with at least four of its highest-profile politicians indicating a desire to run for the presidency in the 2017 election.
As the far-right Front National gains ground under the leadership of Marine Le Pen, the centre-right UMP has failed to capitalise on the dismal performance of the Socialist president, François Hollande.
The UMP is on the brink of imploding after being undermined by a series of corruption scandals. Its former leader, Jean-François Copé, was forced to resign in disgrace last month over the discovery of irregularities in campaign funding for Mr Sarkozy’s failed re-election bid in 2012.
Read more of this report from The Telegraph.