Geen winnaar in Frans presidentsdebat (en)

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - With just three days to go until the most highly-anticipated French presidential election in years, the two candidates slugged it out in a passionate and at times aggressive TV debate on Wednesday (2 May) evening, which lasted two hours but left no outright winner.

Both Nicolas Sarkozy on the right and his socialist challenger, Segolene Royal, tried to shrug off the political portraits that have emerged over the past few weeks - Sarkozy as aggressive and prone to outbursts and Royal as more hesitant, less passionate and a bit vague on policy.

From the start Ms Royal, 53, the daughter of a career army officer, went on the offensive, interrupting Mr Sarkozy several times, challenging him on facts and once accusing him of "political immorality."

Fifty two-year old Mr Sarkozy, the son of a Hungarian immigrant, spoke in a deliberately moderate voice, kept his temper in check and maintained a strained politeness throughout.

The debate - watched by around 20 million people - mainly focused on domestic issues. Subjects such as France's relations with the US and the situation in Iraq never came up, while Europe featured only briefly.

There was a long discussion on the wisdom of a 35-hour working week, which showcased the pair's contrasting styles during the debate. Mr Sarkozy called it a "monumental error," pointing out that no other country in Europe had such a system.

"Look at your friend, Tony Blair," he said. "Look at Scandinavia. They are removing obstacles to people working, not stopping them from doing so."

Ms Royal defended the limited working hours and made a more impassioned, ideological case about the importance of employment. The two candidates also sparred over nuclear issues, taxation and pensions.

Real emotion was injected into the debate when the discussion touched upon educating disabled children. Ms Royal accused Mr Sarkozy of "playing" with the issue by talking about it with a "tear in his eye," despite the fact his government had scrapped a similar measure that she introduced in her previous role as education minister.

He then told her to "calm down" and tried to imply that someone who gets so emotional about political issues is not presidential material. "Do not point at me with this finger," he said, adding later "I don't know why Ms Royal, usually so calm, has lost her nerve."

On Europe, the duo disagreed on Turkey and the EU constitution. Mr Sarkozy, defending his plans for a pared-down treaty to be ratified by national parliaments, said that as the French people had already rejected the EU constitution in a referendum, they "do not want a new constitution."

But Ms Royal reiterated her plans to hold another referendum on the document.

On Turkey, Mr Sarkozy said it does not belong in Europe, while Ms Royal said the door to Turkish EU membership should not be "slammed" shut.

With Sunday's second round vote looming, it is unclear what effect the debate will have on the polls, where Mr Sarkozy has consistently stayed ahead of Ms Royal. The latest poll, by BVA, gives him 52 percent to Ms Royal's 48 percent.

Both candidates have one eye on the 7 million or so voters who cast their ballots for the centrist candidate Francois Bayrou, the runner up in the first round.

Some analysts have suggested that Ms Royal's courting of the centrist vote is alienating her supporters on the far left, however.

Meanwhile, far-right leader Jean Marie Le Pen's appeal to the 4 million voters who supported him in the first round to abstain en masse on Sunday could take potential rightist votes away from Mr Sarkozy.