Nicolas Sarkozy tallies Facebook friends in return to politics
Nicolas Sarkozy wasted no time in attacking potential rivals in the 2017 presidential race after announcing his return to French politics via Facebook.
Nicolas Sarkozy wasted no time in attacking potential rivals in the 2017 presidential race after announcing his return to French politics via Facebook.
In comments to French weekly the ex-president said he was starting "a long march", having pledged to restore France's world standing and revive its economy.
In a swipe at his rivals in the UMP party, Francois Fillon and Alain Juppe - as well as at current Socialist President Francois Hollande, who beat him in the 2012 poll - Sarkozy said he was "overwhelmed" by the response to his comeback.
"Two-and-a-half million internet users have already read my message," he said. "And I got 35,000 new [Facebook] friends in less than a day.
"I've got more new friends in one day than the total for Juppe and Fillon combined."
But Sarkozy will have to explain to voters how he would reverse a relentless rise in unemployment, having failed to do so as president, just like Hollande, whose popularity has sunk to a post-war low of 13 per cent.
