As he quietly bides his time preparing a possible 2017 political comeback, former French President Nicolas Sarkozy has a winning asset very much in the spotlight - his wife, reports Reuters.
Beaming from billboards, magazines and the stage, singer-songwriter and ex-supermodel Carla Bruni has embraced her post-first lady life in a very public way, resuming her career while generating media buzz over the future
plans of her husband.
The role of France's "first ladies" - and what they do once they no longer have that title - has been a matter of comment after photos allegedly showing President Francois Hollande's night-time visits to a mistress triggered the break-up of his relationship with long-time partner Valerie Trierweiler.
Meanwhile, the previous first lady, who married Sarkozy during his first year in office in 2008, still makes waves. Political watchers and brand analysts say 46-year-old brunette Bruni is still the perfect foil to Sarkozy, who jokes he is "the retired guy" since his May 2012 electoral defeat by Hollande.
"First, she's gorgeous, second, she's classy, and third, she seems nice," said Thomas Guenole, political scientist and author of "Nicolas Sarkozy, Chronicle of an Impossible Comeback?"
Since Sarkozy's defeat, Bruni has released her fourth album and launched a tour to promote it, while dipping her toe back into the high-glamour modelling world as the face of Italian jeweller Bulgari and with ads for Parrot Zik headphones.
She's been photographed in the front row at a Paris fashion show and even showed up at a campaign stop for Sarkozy's former spokeswoman, now running for his conservative camp as Paris mayor in March city hall elections.
Read more of this report from Reuters.