Government Minister: Vote Count and Centre-Leaning Valls

government minister: Whoever wins the Jan. 29 run-off will face the April-May presidential election and be battling more popular candidates from the far right to the far left riding frustration with immigration and economic stagnation, according to Hamilton Spectator. Tough-talking, centre-leaning Valls jumped in the presidential race in December few days after Socialist President Fran ois Hollande declined to seek re-election after acknowledging his personal unpopularity would lead his Socialist party to defeat in the presidential battle. Hamon, a former government minister, was leading with 35.2 per cent followed by Valls with 31.6 per cent, based on more than one-third of the vote count, organizers of Sunday's first round of primary voting said. Valls, 54, has faced fierce attacks from harder-left rivals who associate him with Hollande's unpopular moves to relax labour protections to encourage hiring. The Spanish-born politician, naturalized French at the age of 20, is promising to decrease taxes for modest and middle-class households and to boost police and defence. He argues that he has the experience that France's next leader will need as the country is facing the threat of extremist attacks, and to revitalize a lagging economy. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.