French President Nicolas Sarkozy's center-right party faces heavy losses in regional elections Sunday that could affect the pace of reform as maneuvering begins before the 2012 presidential campaign. The center-right suffered one of its worst losses in years in the first round of the ballot, with Sarkozy's UMP party scoring 26 percent compared to 29 percent for the Socialists and 50 percent for leftist parties combined. High abstention levels, which saw more than one in two voters stay home, and a surge in support for the far-right National Front, which won almost 12 percent, underlined the gloomy message for the government ahead of the final runoff. The second round of voting kicked off at 8 A.M. (0700 GMT) Sunday and was expected to run into the evening. A relatively high abstention rate of around 55 percent could be expected, according to some polls. Fears about job losses, immigration and security, as well as resentment about issues such as bank bailouts and executive pay have all fed attacks on Sarkozy. The president's popularity has dived since he won plaudits for his energetic handling of the financial crisis in 2008. He has already promised a pause in reform next year and a heavy loss in the last midterm election before 2012 could make him more cautious about pushing potentially painful cuts in the big projects which remain in 2010. The president is planning a major overhaul of the pensions system, including raising the retirement age, and he also needs to rein in France's public deficit, which is expected to reach 8.2 percent of gross domestic product in 2010. He could find both efforts more difficult if serious electoral losses undermine public support for change in the euro zone's second biggest economy. The powerful CGT union has already called for a day of protest over wages and pensions Tuesday. Other groups, such as farmers, may also see a big defeat for the centre-right as an opportunity to put pressure on the government. The 26 regional councils, responsible for issues such as school buildings and local transport, have very little economic power and normally attract scant interest even inside France. The Socialists won 20 of the 22 mainland regions in the last equivalent election in 2004, but were soundly defeated in the presidential election three years later. Still, the vote is being closely watched as a barometer of public opinion and the Socialists are hoping they can build momentum with a strong showing. Socialist leader Martine Aubry has established some sense of order in her chronically divided party since taking over late in 2008 and she has struck up an alliance for the second round of the election with a newly resurgent Green party.
