The two top candidates in Sunday's first round of the French presidential election, rightwinger Nicolas Sarkozy and Socialist Segolene Royal on Monday embarked on a final round of intense campaigning for the run-off on 6 May. Opinion polls after Sunday's vote - in which Sarkozy took 31.1 percent against Royal's 25.8 and centrist candidate Francois Bayrou's 18.6 - predicted Sarkozy will win. Bayrou has however yet to signal what his advice he will give followers for the second round of polling, in which voters are now faced with a clear left-right choice.
Crime busting free marketeer Sarkozy, who has promised to transform France was due on Monday to address a rally in the eastern city of Dijon while Royal is due in Valence in southern France. Interest in the election is intense, with a record voter turnout of nearly 85 percent in the first round of polling.