Truly extraordinary scenes at the Salle Gaveau in the eighth arrondissement of Paris tonight. Shortly after the official exit polls announcing Sarko’s victory, thousands of his supporters sang the Marseillaise, with thousands more joining in from outside. After a long ride through Paris, his Renault Limousine surrounded by least 20 media motorcycles, Sarko arrived at the UMP HQ at about 8:20 local time. He started his victory speech about 10 minutes later; his address lasted about 10 minutes and was followed by another session of the French national anthem, sung by an exuberant and deeply emotional crowd.
This is an “exceptional moment in the life of a man”, Sarko said. He also reached out to the 47% of the electorate who voted Socialist today. “I respect Mme Royal and her ideas. A president must love all the French. I will be the President of all the French”.
Sarko’s speech was deliberately built around both right-wing and left-wing themes.
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