Facing critical legislative elections next February, French President Georges Pompidou's Gaullist coalition was unpleasantly surprised last week by two new polls showing the government sagging in public esteem. SOFRES, for Société Française d' Enquêtes par Sondages, reported the Gaullists trailing the parties of the united left, 42% to 43%. The rival I.F.O.P for Institute Françios d'Opinion Publique, gave the ruling coalition 48% of the vote. The figures reflected a weaker position for the Gaullists than at any time in Pompidou's four-year administration. The polls intensified the troubles of a government already buffeted by scandals of tax avoidance and influence peddling in...
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