Sarkozy's party likely to dominate parliament

After a poor result in a first round of parliamentary elections, France's Socialists sought to limit the damage yesterday, chasing alliances in the face of a likely crushing victory by President Nicolas Sarkozy's conservatives in the final round.

For the first time in nearly three decades, French voters look set to return to power the current legislative majority, a resounding endorsement of Sarkozy's push to reform Europe's third-largest economy.

In Sunday's first round, his UMP party won 39.6 percent of the vote, while the opposition Socialists had 24.7 percent. The results give the conservatives a strong advantage heading into the decisive runoff next Sunday, putting them on track to expand their absolute majority in the 577-seat parliament.

Socialist Segolene Royal, who lost the presidency to Sarkozy last month, said yesterday she would seek an alliance with centrist Francois Bayrou for the second round in a last-ditch attempt to avoid a "crushing" UMP majority.

Control of the National Assembly is central to Sarkozy's agenda for pulling France out of its doldrums and making it more globally competitive by stripping some labor protections and cutting taxes.

Bayrou, who came in a strong third place in the presidential race, was not able to repeat his success in Sunday's legislative race. Squeezed relentlessly by Sarkozy's camp, his fledgling MoDem party won 7.6 percent. Still, it is well-placed to influence the outcome of the runoff in several key districts.

"It is necessary in a democracy to have ... a counterbalance of powers," Royal told RTL radio yesterday. She warned against the "arrogance" of the ruling party.

The conservatives, too, reached out to Bayrou's party to join forces for the second round. UMP member Patrick Devedjian said the centrists were "welcome in the presidential majority."

Bayrou and his party held meetings yesterday to discuss their strategy. On Sunday night he warned of a "terribly" one-sided parliament. "One day, France will regret this lack of balance. It is not healthy," he said.

Communist leader Marie-George Buffet, whose party's support is shrinking rapidly, urged the left to stay together instead of allying with centrists.

Support for the fringes withered in Sunday's election, sidelining Jean-Marie Le Pen's once-influential extreme right National Front and the Socialists' allies farther to the left.

Turnout sank to a record low of 60.4 percent, which pollsters blamed on lack of suspense: The UMP has been widely expected to win since Sarkozy's strong victory over Royal in the presidential election last month.

Sarkozy's backers say a convincing mandate is the only way to get the French - eager to strike and wary of globalization - to reform. Prime Minister Francois Fillon laid out his agenda Sunday night for the coming months: reform of universities, making transport strikes less crippling, new anti-crime measures, freeing up the labor market and a plan to cut the large national debt.