Royal leads Socialist Party race

The former French presidential candidate, Segolene Royal, has taken an early lead in the race to become leader of the opposition Socialist Party.

Ms Royal, defeated by Nicolas Sarkozy in last year's election, came first in a ballot of the party's 233,000 members on the programmes of the six hopefuls.

She won 29% of the vote, four points more than Paris Mayor Bertrand Delanoe and former minister Martine Aubry.

The Socialist Party will meet next week in Reims to try to choose a new leader.

Party members will then formally elect a successor to Secretary General Francois Hollande on 20 November.

"If there is no majority before the party conference... the Socialist Party faces difficult days"
Francois Hollande
Socialist Party Secretary-General

On Friday, Ms Royal said she felt the result of the party ballot had given her "legitimacy", but refused to formally declare her candidacy for the party leadership without everyone's support.

"The vote will have to be respected," she told France Inter radio.

Later, Mr Hollande, Ms Royal's ex-partner and a supporter of Mr Delanoe, said he felt she had failed to win a decisive victory.

"It's not a victory which today enables her to have a majority in the Socialist Party. What is more, nobody has a majority in the Socialist Party, and that's where the problem lies," he told RTL.

"If there is no majority before the party conference, or at the latest on the evening of the conference, the Socialist Party faces difficult days," he added.

Correspondents say Ms Royal, 55, has promised to change the profile of a party criticised by many in France as out of touch, and has adopted a tough stance on capitalism during the financial crisis.