France Elects Francois Hollande as President

Behold Francois Hollande in the photo above, the man who defeated Nikolas Sarkozy in yesterday's run-off  for President of France by a slim margin, 51.9%-48.1%. Sarkozy conceded the election soon after polls closed, wishing his opponent well as he ended his term as the country's leader

Frank Fife/AFP/Getty Images

Seventeen years have passed since the country's last Socialist President, Francois Mitterand, left office. 

Hollande faces the daunting task of righting the economy, in addition to several other major problems, such as whether France will continue its military presence in Afghanistan.

Several violent incidents of social unrest have erupted in the past few years with rising discontent among minority populations. To answer some of the protesters' complaints, Hollande pledged that he will renegotiate a European treaty on budget cuts. He plans to increase government stimulus and all government spending, although the EU might push back strongly against that strategy, given the Greek debt crisis and the fact that France has accrued huge debts.


Ham on Wry wonders how Sarkozy will handle his defeat, after his meteoric rise to the presidency. Perhaps he'll join his wife in show business.