French election turnout higher than expected

Netherlands-Hungary qualify for return leg," said one tweet in a play on the name of Socialist challenger Francois Hollande and the origin of President Nicolas Sarkozy's father.


Seeking to enforce a 1977 law that imposed a blackout on disclosing results, projections or exit polls before the last polling stations close at 8 p.m. (1800 GMT), authorities threatened fines of up to 75,000 euros ($99,000) for breaches.


But official warnings spurred derision and defiance with a profusion of dummy results and fun-poking messages on a micro-blogging network where national frontiers no longer exist.


Mr Hollande says Mr Sarkozy has trapped France in a downward spiral of austerity and job losses, while Sarkozy says his rival is inexperienced and weak-willed and would spark financial panic through reckless spending pledges.
The eurozone debt crisis and France's sluggish growth and high unemployment have hung over the campaign, with Mr Sarkozy struggling to defend his record and Mr Hollande unable to credibly promise spending increases.
"I have never missed a vote, but this time I feel little enthusiasm for the election," said 62-year-old retired high schoolteacher Isabelle Provost as she emerged into bright Paris sunshine after casting her ballot.
"Economically there is little difference between the two main candidates," she said, echoing the sentiment of many other voters of the right and the left.
If, as expected, Mr Sarkozy polls second, he will be the only incumbent French president to lose a first round-vote in the history of the Fifth Republic, which came into being in 1958.
Mr Hollande voted in his stronghold, the country town of Tulle in the central Correze region, where he is the local member of parliament and heads the regional council. He was warmly greeted by officials and voters alike.
"I am attentive, engaged, but first of all respectful," he said. "The day ahead will be a long one, this is an important moment."
Mr Sarkozy and his wife Carla Bruni cast their ballots in Paris' plush 16th district, a stronghold of his right-wing UMP party.
Mr Hollande was to make a speech in Tulle minutes after polls close and official results estimates are announced on the prime-time 8:00pm television news, while Mr Sarkozy was to speak in Paris at around 9:00pm.

French polling agencies are permitted to take samples directly from ballot boxes, so accurate voting estimates are made public immediately polls close.
Web-users took to Twitter using the "#RadioLondres" hashtag along with elaborate and witty code words to forecast results without breaking France's strict laws banning such predictions until polling stations close.