Voters resoundingly endorsed President Nicolas Sarkozy's plans to overhaul the French economy, giving his party a commanding lead Sunday in the first round of elections for parliament, according to preliminary official results.With 82 percent of the vote counted, Sarkozy's UMP party had 40 percent of the vote, while the opposition Socialists had 25 percent, the Interior Ministry said.
Sarkozy's conservatives have a strong advantage heading into the decisive runoff next Sunday, on track to expand their absolute majority in the 577-seat parliament. Control of the National Assembly is central to Sarkozy's agenda of tax cuts, labor reforms, and other plans to try to shake France out of its malaise.
The election sapped support from the fringes -- including Jean-Marie Le Pen's once-influential extreme right National Front and the Socialists' farther-left allies -- and leaves France facing a parliament tilted unusually well to the right.
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