Spotlight: Are things going better for France's Hollande as election approaching?

"I ask to be judged on employment ...," French President Francois Hollande said during a recent prime-time interview, in response to growing critics and sliding popularity.

With his economic credibility already on the line, Hollande has set reversing jobless claims as condition to extend his stay at the Elysee Palace, betting on better business climate and various devices he implemented to encourage hiring.

Unfortunately, the end of gloom is not insight for the French top official.

The Labor Ministry's monthly report released on Monday showed that number of people out of work in France reached a record high in August to more than 3.556 million from a month earlier, the highest level since 2013.

The fresh labor data likely to pour cold water on his plan to fix the jobless headache and ignited critics over his failure to devote on pledges to bring down joblessness and promote national wealth as he promised five years ago.

"These are disastrous results which show the total failure of Francois Hollande's government. We need a radical change in economic policy," Alain Juppe, former foreign minister and also the favorite to win right-wing parties primary, wrote on his tweeter account.

To ex-president Nicolas Sarkozy who is seeking to revenge a failure in 2012 presidential race, "French economy is in a situation of extreme emergency," suggesting that a change in policies is the only alternative.

Most polls show that if Hollande runs as the left's candidate, he will come third to far-right Front National leader Marine Le Pen and whoever heads the main center-right campaign.

With up to 16 percent of the votes, the French president will be eliminated in the first round of election scheduled for April 23, an Elabe poll for the business daily Le Echos showed on Sept. 22.

"Francois Hollande will most likely improve his falling popularity by improving significantly the national economic situation and mainly by decreasing unemployment," Erwan Listrohan, director of studies at BVA pollster told Xinhua.

"People who are doubting about the efficiency of his policies will credit him only if they will notice a significant and lasting improvement in labor market," said Listrohan.

"A strong distrust towards President Hollande let us consider a very limited potential for re-election," he added.

Over the past four decades, the unemployment rate has been painting French political spectra.

In 1975, 1 million unemployed people forced Valey Giscard d'Estaing to quit the Elysee Palace. With 2 million jobseekers, socialist Francois Mitterrand accepted coalition with the right wing in 1986 to secure a second mandate. Defeated Edouard Balladur in 1995, Jacques Chirac left office as joblessness jumped in 2002.

"Unemployment figures are bad news for Francois Hollande as they weaken his eventual candidacy and strengthen the opposition," said Laurent Neumann, political analyst at news channel BFMTV.

"Given that his promise to lower joblessness seemed to be broken, Hollande now is seeking to hold other pledges such as maintaining activities at Alstom's Belfort site and dismantling Calais camp in order to set conditions for a candidacy," he added.

Hollande said he would announce by the end of 2016 if he will seek a second term.

However, he gave a clearest indication that he intends to re-elect next year during a meeting on "democracy and terrorism" held earlier this month in Paris.

He vowed to not "let the image of France, the influence of France deteriorate over the coming months or coming years."

Traditionally, the incumbent head of state represents his party in an election, without a contest. But prospects of a primary have been raised due to the head of state's record low approval ratings. Endit