French President Hollande Says He Won't Stand Again If Unemployment Doesn't Drop
Referring to a failed pledge to "invert the trend" of unemployment, he said live on French television: "Do you think I can say to the French people, 'I didn't manage it for five years, but I promise I'll do it in the next five?' It doesn't work like that."
"If I don't manage it before the end of my term, do you think I will go before the French people" in 2017? "The French people would be unyielding and they would be right."
Hollande has said previously that he would not have the necessary credibility to stand for re-election in 2017 if he did not live up to his pledge to bring unemployment down.
Unemployment has risen 27 months out of the 30 Hollande has been in charge and growth has ground to a halt.
With an approval rating at a historic low of 13 percent and a staggering 97 percent believing he has failed on the economy, more than eight in 10 French people say they do not want Hollande to run for a second term.