Sarkozy, Royal Head to Presidential Runoff

Many Royal supporters on Sunday said they were wary of repeating the mistake they made in the 2002 election, when leftists split their first-round votes among so many small parties that it siphoned critical votes away from the Socialist candidate, typically the left's standard-bearer, and opened the door for a narrow second-place victory by Le Pen, who faced Chirac in the final round.

Sarkozy and Royal have been the front-runners in opinion surveys since last summer, but the intense media scrutiny and long campaign have left both bruised going into the final two weeks.

Royal, who favors white or red suits, captured the French desire for modernity and change, and she was an instant media darling. She steamrolled the men in her party to capture the Socialist nomination, but soon ran into serious problems with misstatements and gaffes -- particularly on foreign policy issues -- that continue to fuel voter concern about her competence.

"Her goal is to rejuvenate our democracy and give power back to the people," said Daisy B. Stover, a 56-year-old Paris film technician who said she voted for Royal, at least partly because she fears Sarkozy's hard-line stances. "He's a wacko."

Sarkozy, on the other hand, has struggled to soften his image; as he said in his recently updated biography, he worries that some people don't think he has "a human side."

"He'll bring social and political change, being from a new generation," said Monique Maletras, 64, an artist voting at a school in north Paris, who was impressed with Royal early on but then changed her mind. "Unfortunately she turned out to be incompetent. . . . She contradicts herself all the time."

With smaller parties nipping at Royal's heels from the left, and Le Pen challenging Sarkozy from the right, both candidates were compelled to drift to the margins to protect their bases, which left a large opening on the center that was filled by a surprising late-in-the-game surge by Bayrou, a politician, horse breeder and former teacher and who attracted many voters in the center who were disillusioned with the left-right battles that have been a hallmark of French politics for 50 years.

Nonetheless, many said they were concerned about Bayrou's ability to govern, and in recent weeks his support withered as voters returned to their parties and started looking forward to a May 6 slugfest. Political analysts said they expect a ferocious battle between Royal and Sarkozy to win over Bayrou's backers, who could be the deciding factor in the final round.

Researcher Corinne Gavard contributed to this report.