French Election Turnout Reaches 30.66 pct by Noon
2012-05-06 20:23:43 m.cri.cn Web Editor: xingyihang
The turnout of voters casting their ballots for the next French president has reached 30.66 percent by local time 12 a.m. (1000 GMT) on Sunday, the interior ministry announced on its official website as many more voters are still on their way to polling stations across the country.
The turnout of the second round was 2.37 percent higher in the first four hours after the polling kicked off, as compared to that of the first round turnout. However, it was down from 34.11 percent in the run-off five years ago.
Both candidates, especially the incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy who has trailed opinion polls for months, would like to see all their own supporters come and vote for them.
Most polling stations will be closed at 6 p.m. (1600 GMT), with the exception of 8 p.m. (1800 GMT) in big cities, after which the world will know if Socialist frontrunner Francois Hollande has been elected as the new president as predicted by all polls.
