Nicolas Sarkozy was declared the most unpopular president in French history in a damning poll on Sunday ahead of the first round of the presidential elections next week, as the two leading candidates vied to rally voters in mass, open-air speeches in Paris.

法国将于下周举行首轮总统大选，而就在上周日的一项民意调查中，现任总统尼古拉-萨科奇被评为法国历史上最不受欢迎的总统。两位支持率领先的总统候选人正在巴黎举行大规模竞选集会，发表露天演讲，竞争选民。

The capital's Place de la Concorde was transformed into a sea of red, white and blue, as Mr Sarkozy implored¹ France's "silent majority" to confound forecasts that he will be trounced（痛打，严斥） by Socialist² rival François Hollande in the presidential run-off on May 6.

"They said you wouldn't come," Mr Sarkozy told a crowd his camp put at 150,000 but which appeared to be less than half that size.

"Silent France has responded through your presence," he said, in a speech aimed at Right-wing traditionalists that attacked multiculturalism³, teaching unions, affirmative action and Europe's open borders while defending families and hard work.

Five miles to the East, the ambience（气氛，布景） was markedly festive⁴ as Mr Hollande told his troops before the Château de Vincennes that the first Socialist presidential victory in 24 years was now within their grasp.

"Nothing is going to stop us," the front-runner told a diverse（不同的） crowd his camp put at 100,000, and which included several French singers and artists.

"I will be a president of justice. Before taking any decision, I will ask myself: 'Is this fair?'"

"We have waited too long – 10 years in opposition⁵. We have a duty to win."

After a brief surge, the latest polls suggest Mr Sarkozy is heading for the electoral guillotine（断头台） – tipped to trail Mr Hollande narrowly in the first round of the election next Sunday, only to lose the second round two weeks later by up to 14 percentage points.