It has been well over a decade since Nicolas Sarkozy left the Élysée Palace in defeat, and his multiple legal battles could now provide work for an army of lawyers. However, the former French president is a hero to Yveline Renaud, and the hundreds of other people who were queuing patiently last week in front of a bookshop in Menton in the winter sun to buy a signed copy of his new book, in which he describes his recent spell in jail.
“I really wish he were back in charge,” said Renaud, 67, who put up posters in Dijon for Sarkozy during the 2007 campaign that brought him to power. “He is really able and a true politician who would be able to run France better.” Clothilde Vidal, 63, next to her in the queue, added: “I’ve been a fan since the early days. He loves France.”
