Another French Revolution

Two months before France chooses her next president, more and more people are talking about the battle between current president Nicolas Sarkozy and socialist candidate Francois Hollande.
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Two months before France chooses her next president, more and more people are talking about the battle between the current president, Nicolas Sarkozy, and the socialist candidate, Francois Hollande. But there is no doubt that the most interesting factor in the battle is Marine Le Pen -- the leader of "Front National," the extreme right wing in France.

Le Pen inherited the place of her father, Jean Marie Le Pen, in the office. He is known for his extreme political positions and ideas, which became a taboo since they are not in the consensus -- they're extreme ideas. His daughter isn't in his place yet, but she is definitely about to reach it.

Le Pen seems to be in the middle of her elections process, despite the fact that she hasn't gotten the signatures of 500 mayors in France in order to go for the race, as French law requires. Knowing she won't make it if she doesn't work hard, Le Pen does her best to win over the public in order to convince her audience that she's the best candidate: "For you, the French people, and to all of my friends, I say, the great days of France are ahead us!" Le Pen said at the ceremony of her nominations as the leader of the Front National Party.

Le Pen makes an effort for people to recognize the fact that she isn't a minor player in the elections: "Today, the globalization is a great problem; the disappearance of borders; effacement of nations -- there is no questions that these issues require us to act," she said to the Israeli reporter Lior Friedman while being interviewed to the Israeli TV last week.

Le Pen wants to be the next president of France -- a female president. She says that mostly, people don't get her and don't take a moment to think and understand her point. But after hearing her father's tough expressions against minority groups and her own words at various occasions, it is hard to believe that Le Pen really wants the "global peace" she talks about.

The first round of the elections will be held in two months. The surveys predict a great success for Le Pen and her party. It is possible that Sarkozy and Hollande will be neck and neck, but Le Pen will be right behind them with more than 20 percent of support, a recent survey predicts.

While I traveled in France a year and a half ago, I noticed that a great amount of people believe that France is facing tough days. When I walked through Champs-Élysées Avenue in Paris, I stopped one student to ask him what he thinks France needs in order to solve her problems. He said: "All we need is a real leader." It would be interesting to know which candidate he supports, and who is the real leader that this country needs.

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