Far right FN soars in regional elections in France

Near-final results place France's far-right National Front (FN) ahead in at least six of 13 mainland regions,in the first round of regional voting, capitalizing on the shock of last month’s Paris terrorist attacks which killed 132 people. FN is predicted to have won 30.8% of the vote, followed by former President Nicolas Sarkozy's Republicans’ 27.2% and President Francois Hollande's Socialists 22.7%.

FN leader Marine Le Pen, who stood in the northern region of Nord-Pas-de-Calais-Picardie, and her niece Marion Marechal-Le Pen, 25, who ran in Provence-Alpes-Cote d'Azur in the south, both looked to have picked up more than 40% of the vote, breaking the party’s former records. A second round of voting on Dec. 13 will determine the final outcome.