The deadline to declare yourself a candidate for the Pink Party presidential nomination expired last Tuesday. Three "présidentiables" announced their candidacies: Dominique Strauss-Kahn (57), Ségolène Royal (53), and Laurent Fabius (60). Apparently the prospect of moving to the Palais de l'Élysée was too much for stay-at-home Jack Lang (67).

PINK POWER
(de G à D): Ségo, DSK, Laurent Fabius

It doesn't look like much of a horse race, although the tracking polls show recent slippage among all three candidates' broad support.

MM. Strauss-Kahn et Fabius are party elephants, old pros at the top of the PS heap. The elephants are not in the business of seeking out certain political humiliation, so one imagines they know something the rest of us are missing -- like having bought the votes of the 200,000 paid-up PS members. But even having pulled off a breathtaking upset or purchase, they have no broad appeal beyond the party. DSK has little support beyond the PS base, and M. Fabius has something approaching zero.

So what is their game? To keep Ségo honest? To garner enough support to be accommodated as spoilers? MM. Strauss-Kahn and Fabius are not third party candidates with no dream of succeeding. They are swayers of power in France's largest opposition party who appear intent on doing the party a repeat of 2002.

Supposing Ségo prevails, unless there is a spell of bikini weather in the next few months, the Socialists have their work cut out for them.

L'ÉCART SE CREUSE ENTRE SARKOZY ET ROYAL
[THE GAP WIDENS BETWEEN SARKOZY AND ROYAL]
09 octobre 2006 (Figaro)

The PS nominee looks to pull no more than 29.5% on the first round presidential voting, while Sarko will get 38%-39% according to recent polling by TNS Sofres-Unilog for Le Figaro-RTL-LCI.

Unless of course those numbers are all wrong. Try these.

SARKOZY DEVANT ROYAL… ET INVERSEMENT
[SARKOZY IN FRONT OF ROYAL... AND VICE VERSA]

09 octobre 2006 (NouvelObs) - Selon un sondage TNS/Sofres, le président de l'UMP arriverait nettement en tête au premier tour. Mais selon CSA, 49% préfèreraient une victoire de la socialiste.

...Ségolène Royal peut cependant se rassurer à la lecture d'un second paru lundi, réalisé par CSA pour i-Télé et Le Parisien/Aujourd'hui en France, selon lequel près d'un Français sur deux (49%) préférerait la voir élue présidente plutôt que Nicolas Sarkozy.

A la question "quelle personnalité préféreriez-vous voir élue présidente de la République", 49% des sondés choisissent la socialiste face au président de l'UMP qui obtient 39%, tandis que 12% ne se prononcent pas.

According to a TNS/Sofres survey [above], the president of UMP would clearly top the first round of voting. But according to CSA, 49% would prefer a Socialist victory.

... Ségolène Royal can take some comfort from the results of a second poll published Monday, by CSA for i-Télé et Le Parisien/Aujourd'hui en France, according to which close to one French in two (49%) would prefer to see her elected president rather than Nicolas Sarkozy.

With the question "which personality would you prefer elected president of the Republic", 49% of those questioned choose the Socialist confronted with the president of the UMP who gets 39%, while 12% are undecided.

It's early. Polls mean little. You are meant to be confused.

PFFT (What is this?): Socialist slice-up 2 | Suspense ¼ | Surprise in the making ¼ | Rayonnement français 0