Chirac rival Sarkozy takes over French ruling party, eyes presidency
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France's political scene changed dramatically when Nicolas Sarkozy, the ambitious finance minister, was formally named the new leader of the ruling conservative party -- widely seen as the start of his march to replace Jacques Chirac as French president in 2007.
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PARIS In a move that could change the face of French politics, Nicolas Sarkozy, the popular finance minister whose personal and ideological differences with President Jacques Chirac are well known, took over the helm of the governing center-right party on
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Nicolas Sarkozy has been inaugurated as president of France. Will he lead the country in the right direction?
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French President Nicolas Sarkozy arrived in India Friday for a state visit aimed at boosting political ties, pushing for a bigger share of the booming Asian economy and revitalising weapons sales.
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French Finance Minister Nicolas Sarkozy resigned Monday in order to take over the leadership of the ruling center-right Union for a Popular Movement (UMP) party, French TF1 television quoted government officials as saying.
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French centre-right candidate Nicolas Sarkozy, the frontrunner to succeed Jacques Chirac as president, has distanced himself from the Chirac era.Comment
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French President Nicolas Sarkozy&#39;s rightwing party was headed for a landslide victory in Sunday&#39;s parliamentary elections that will give him free rein to push through his bold reform programme.
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There will be a shift of power on the French right this weekend which could mark the beginning of the end of the Chirac era in French politics.
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President Jacques Chirac embarks on an eight-day Asian tour aimed at winning France a bigger slice of China's super-hot economic pie by playing on political and cultural relations that have grown noticeably closer.
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Nicolas Sarkozy, France's centre-right interior minister, has formally announced his bid for the French presidency in a 2007 race likely to pit him against Socialist candidate Segolene Royal.Comment
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Mesdames, Messieurs, France is now open for business. Nicolas Sarkozy won the French presidency on pledges to open up the economy, and his government is selling one message: Things have changed.
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Segolene Royal took her campaign to become France's first female president into the tumultuous Lebanese capital Thursday, launching a Middle East trip seen as a test of her foreign policy savvy.
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President Nicolas Sarkozy will seek to bolster his mandate for pervasive reforms to energize France's sluggish economy in legislative elections starting Sunday.
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French President Jacques Chirac held a summit meeting with Italy's Romano Prodi, shoring up bilateral ties that had been strained under the prime minister's predecessor Silvio Berlusconi.
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A profile of Nicolas Sarkozy - leader of French President Jacques Chirac's party and presidential hopeful.
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French voters are electing a new parliament, with President Sarkozy's UMP party expected to make gains.
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THE French president promoted a staunch ally to replace a popular finance minister, strengthening his hand ahead of an expected struggle for the governing party&#39;s 2007 presidential nomination.