Chirac Makes It Official
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.
PARIS (AP) – Jacques Chirac, admired and scorned during 12 years as president of France, leaves a legacy as mixed and ambiguous as the man himself.
As widely expected, the French leader announced Sunday that he will not seek a third term in presidential elections in six weeks. In a televised address, Mr. Chirac said he would find new ways to serve his country after leaving office: “Serving France, and serving peace, is what I have committed my whole life to.”
Though he did not say as much, the announcement was an implicit acknowledgment that low popularity, age – he is 74 – and Nicolas Sarkozy, his conservative colleague-cum-rival as hugely ambitious as Chirac once was, have finally overtaken him.
Most on the French right Mr. Chirac once dominated and in the party founded for his re-election in 2002 have swung behind Sarkozy before the April-May two-round presidential vote, leaving Mr. Chirac with no political base for another run.
But Mr. Chirac has pulled surprises in the past and he kept France guessing as long as possible about whether he will run again – seemingly to avoid becoming a lame duck too soon.
