Despite his attempts to rebuild his reputation, 72 percent of French surveyed do not want to see former President Nicolas Sarkozy as a presidential candidate in the 2017 presidential election.
On Friday, members of France’s Union for a Popular Movement (UMP) overwhelmingly backed renaming their party into “The Republicans”.
The move is expected to become a springboard for Nicolas Sarkozy, who is likely to win his party’s nomination to run for president in the 2017 election.
The Odoxa poll, however, revealed that 79% do not think the rebranding would give Sarkozy a fresh start.
The rebranding, which is to be officially announced on Saturday, has already sparked heated debates within the country.
The supporters of the name change claim the move is intended to invoke the country’s revolutionary values at a time when the far right has been winning votes by warning of a loss of national identity. It is also a tribute to the French Republic that replaced the monarchy, and the core republican values of “Liberty, Equality and Fraternity,” rather than a nod to the US Republican Party.
“Since returning to politics, Mr. Sarkozy has had a lot of difficulty winning over the French people. Will this rebranding change things? The answer is clearly no,” Céline Bracq, deputy director of Odoxa, has commented on the issue.
Sarkozy, who was elected party chief with 64.5 percent of the votes in November, was French president from 2007 to 2012.
A similar poll conducted earlier showed that 77 percent of the French do not want to see current President Francois Hollande run for president in 2017 either.
