French President Nicolas Sarkozy's approval ratings have sunk to their lowest level since his election in May 2007, Reuters quoted a poll as showing today. The poll comes after Sarkozy's centre-right UMP party suffered a drubbing in regional elections this month, capping a series of political difficulties ranging from accusations of nepotism to a debate on national identity. A jobless rate of more than 10 percent and feeble economic growth have also taken their toll on the government. The Ipsos poll for French magazine Le Point showed Sarkozy's approval rating fell 7 percentage points in a month to 32 percent in March. Sarkozy's unpopularity rating rose 6 points to 65 percent in the same period. Prime Minister Francois Fillon's approval rating remained unchanged at 46 percent. The popularity table was led, with a 55 percent approval rating, by International Monetary Fund head Dominique Strauss-Kahn, a Socialist former finance minister whose IMF role has given him a high profile during the economic crisis. Strauss-Kahn was followed by Paris mayor Bertrand Delanoe and Rama Yade, a rebel in Sarkozy's cabinet who is popular with the public but has often clashed with other ministers. The survey was carried out on March 26 and 27 and was based on the opinions of 948 people.
