The former president of France, Nicolas Sarkozy admitted defeat in the Les Républicains primary on Sunday, saying "I did not manage to convince a majority of French people."
The former prime minister, François Fillon was heading for a landslide victory in the first round, with Alain Juppé, also a former prime minister, coming in a distant second.
With more than 3.8 million votes counted from about 92 per cent of polling stations, Mr Fillon had 44.2 per cent, Mr Juppé 28.4 per cent and Mr Sarkozy 20.7 per cent. The final results are not expected until later today
Mr Sarkozy congratulated Mr Fillon and Mr Juppé, who will continue to next Sunday’s runoff.
“The political choices of François Fillon are closer to my own . . . Fillon seems to me to have best understood the challenges facing France. I will vote for him in the second round,” Sarkozy said.
‘Collaborator’
When Mr Fillon was Mr Sarkozy’s prime minister, from 2007 until 2012, Mr Sarkozy referred to him as his “collaborator”.
Whoever wins the runoff, Mr Sarkozy said, he will vote for the Les Républicains candidate in the presidential election next May.
Mr Sarkozy’s elimination from the primary marks a humiliating end to his political career.
It reaffirms the French electorate’s rejection of a re-match between him and president François Hollande, who defeated him in 2012, and may be interpreted as a warning to Mr Hollande that he, too, should abandon hopes of re-election six months from now.
Four other candidates scored between 0.3 and 2.6 per cent in early results. Bruno Le Maire, the first candidate to admit defeat, said he would vote for Mr Fillon in the run-off.
Participation in the primary was much higher than expected, with between 3.9 and 4.3 million voters coming out on a cold, rainy, windy Sunday and waiting for up to an hour and a half to cast their ballots.
Mr Fillon is seen to represent provincial, Catholic France.
He and Mr Juppé are rooted in the Sarthe and Aquitaine regions, whereas Mr Sarkozy has no geographical ties outside Paris.
Late surge
Mr Juppé had led the polls for many months. Strong performances in three televised debates boosted Mr Fillon, who scored less than 10 per cent in polls six months ago.
One-third of voters said they had changed their minds in the last week.
Mr Juppé and Mr Sarkozy attacked each other during the months when they were frontrunners.
Mr Juppé portrayed Mr Sarkozy as hot-headed and extreme, while Mr Sarkozy said Mr Juppé would represent a “soft” change of power.
The negative rhetoric eroded both candidates’ lead, to the advantage of Mr Fillon. Pollsters said 63 per cent of voters self-identified as belonging to the right and centre, while 15 per cent said they were from the left.
Eight per cent said they usually vote for the extreme right-wing Front National, and 14 per cent said they identified with no party.
Any registered voter who signed a declaration saying he or she shared the values of the right and centre was allowed to vote, after paying a €2 fee.
More than half of those surveyed said the economy was their priority. Mr Fillon has promised to diminish the number of civil servants by at least half a million.
Marine Le Pen, the leader of the extreme right-wing Front National, told France 3 television that the LR candidates had "adapted to" her policies.
“Never have they talked as much about security. Never have they been as opposed to savage globalisation.
“Never have they talked as much about protectionism,” she said. “It is we who are choosing the terms of this election.”
