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French PM warns about "civil war" if far-rightists win regional election

Xinhua, December 11, 2015 Adjust font size:

French Prime Minister Manuel Valls on Friday warned that the far-right National Front (FN) possible major gains in regional runoffs would lead to a "civil war."

"There are two options for our country. There is an option which is that of the extreme right, which basically advocates the division which may lead to civil war and there is another vision which is that of the Republic," Valls said.

Three days ahead a decisive round on regional election, the Socialist premier denounced "a rip-off" of the anti-immigrant party whose (campaign) project, according to him was "a scam."

Never having control of a regional council, the FN made a major victory on Sunday with its leader Marine Le Pen winning 40.64 percent of the votes in France's northernmost area, Nord-Pas-de-Calais-Picardie region, while her niece Marion Marechal-Le Pen also came out first in the southeastern Provence-Alpes-Cote d'Azur region with 40.55 percent of the votes.

According to final official figures, the National Front won 27.73 percent of the first-round vote nationwide followed by the conservative the Republicans party and its allies that secured 26.65 percent. The ruling Socialists ranked third with 23.12 percent of the votes.

"I respect the French who made this choice because when there is a vote of anger, we must hear it," Valls told France inter radio.

"To all those tempted by the extreme vote because they have had enough, I tell them, for these retired, these workers, these citizens in poverty, the youth who can't see the future, it would be a disaster, it will be the worst," he warned. Enditem