奧朗德宣佈不謀求明年的法國總統連任

François Hollande announced on Thursday night that he would not run for a second term in next year’s French presidential elections.

弗朗索瓦.奧朗德(François Hollande)週四晚宣佈，他不會在明年的法國總統選舉中謀求連任。

The unprecedented decision was driven by his historically low popularity ratings, which left him little chance of success against centre-right candidate François Fillon and far-right National Front leader Marine Le Pen.

做出這一史無前例的決定，原因出自奧朗德處於歷史性低點的民意支持率，這讓他在中右翼候選人弗朗索瓦.菲永(François Fillon)和極右翼國民陣線(National Front)領導人馬琳.勒龐(Marine Le Pen)面前幾乎沒有勝算。

He would also first have had to face a hotly contested and potentially humiliating contest for selection as candidate of his ruling Socialist party.

而且，他首先還不得不面對激烈並可能自取其辱的競爭，才能成爲其所在的執政黨社會黨(Socialist)的候選人。

Power and the exercise of power have not made me lose my lucidity, Mr Hollande said in a sombre television address from the Elysée Palace.

在愛麗捨宮發表的陰鬱電視講話中，奧朗德表示：權力和對權力的行使並未讓我失去清醒的頭腦。

I am conscious of the risks that my candidacy would create for the [Socialist] majority.

我很清楚我擔任候選人會爲（社會黨的）多數黨地位帶來的風險。

Therefore I have decided not to run for president.

因此，我已決定不競選總統。

His prime minister, Manuel Valls, is now expected to run instead in a bid to unite the fractured Socialist party — although he, too, will face stiff opposition from rivals such as Arnaud Montebourg, the leftist firebrand and former economy minister.

目前，他的總理曼努埃爾.瓦爾斯(Manuel Valls)預計會代他競選，試圖將四分五裂的社會黨團結起來——儘管他也將面臨阿爾諾.蒙特布爾(Arnaud Montebourg)等對手的激烈競爭。蒙特布爾曾任經濟部長，是一個激進的左翼人士。

Mr Hollande is the first French president since the second world war not to stand for re-election.

奧朗德是二戰以來首位不競選連任的法國總統。

His presidency was marked by a series of brutal Islamist terrorist attacks in Paris and elsewhere and a stubbornly weak economy.

在他的總統任上，法國在巴黎及其他地區遭遇了一系列血腥的伊斯蘭主義恐怖襲擊，還出現了頑固的經濟疲軟。

An early round of tax rises after his election in 2012 to close the budget deficit and persistently high unemployment made him deeply unpopular.

2012年當選後初期爲消除預算赤字而啓動的一輪增稅措施、以及居高不下的失業率，令奧朗德人氣一落千丈。

A midterm switch to pro-business reforms failed to win him back popular backing, despite a recent uptick in the economy.

而中期向親商界改革的轉型，儘管令經濟在近期有所起色，卻也未能爲他賺回人氣。