The surprise result also ended the historical French political divide of right versus left, by sending to the second round, scheduled in two weeks time, two leaders from the right, Mr. Chirac and Mr. Le Pen.

"This is the end of an era in France, where the classic political theatre has been dramatically shaken", commented a French political analyst.

"This is a vote of sanction for both Chirac and Jospin", commented a French political analyst, as almost all leading political figures from both right and left warned the French voters against the "catastrophe" a possible victory of Mr. Le Pen in the second tour would present for France and Europe, and urged their followers to vote for Mr. Chirac.

According to polls, Mr. Chirac would crush Mr. Le Pen by 80 per cent against 20 per cent for the leader of Front National.

Analysts explained Mr. Le Pen’s score on placing his campaign on the burning issues of security, a "France for the French first" and against Europe of Maastricht, avoiding however a direct denunciation of "foreigners", meaning France’s 5 million immigrants, mostly North African Muslims and blacks, blamed for the growing climate of insecurity in poor, crowded suburbs in the one hand and the similarity of programs from the two leading runners, Mr. Chirac and Mr. Jospin.

Thousands of people took to the streets in Paris and many other major cities protesting against the victory of Mr. Le Pen and his Front National hours after the results were known.

Besides the great number of candidates (16 against 9 for the last elections) -- a matter that some political analysts say is a sign of the presidency losing its prestige, while others argue that it symbolises the very essence of French democracy -- this election has another specificity: that of having the troubling issue of insecurity, which is on the increase at a surprising sped all over France, at the heart of the campaign debates and the main item of most candidate’s programs.

On the highly dramatic and controversial issue of "insecurity", the classic right, i.e., Mr. Jeacques Chirac, Mr. Alain Madelin of Liberal Democracy and Mr. François Bayrou of UDF) are for more of firmness against the delinquents (among them a majority of minors, mostly North African Arabs and blacks), whereas the three parties of the "plural left" that has governed France during the last five years and includes the ruling Socialist Party, the Communist Party and the Greens, are of the opinion that it is necessary to "prevent" before applying punishments commensurate of the committed "incivilities".

Under the slogan of "tolerance zero", Mr. Le Pen did not stop to progress in the polls in the past elections.

The presence of 16 candidates (eight of the "republican right" plus two representing the extreme right and eight on left, with three from the extreme left) benefited mostly Mr. Le Pen, analysts said, adding that while voters for classic parties abstained in the first round, followers of Mr. Le Pen were fully mobilised.

The victory of the extreme right, that between Mr. Le Pen and Mr. Bruno Maigret, a former deputy to the leader of Front National who got 2.5 per cent, presents a comfortable 19,5 per cent is also a boost to Europe’s rightist parties, particularly in Austria and in Italy, both lambasted by France as symbols of "fascism on the march".

"This is the end of (France’s) Communist Party", observed Mr. Le Pen his statement, referring to the 3 per cent scored by Mr. Robert Hue, the leader of the Communist Party, the last one in Europe to keep its original name after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1990.

Analysts said considering the crushing defeat of his party, Mr. Hue might as well follow the example of Mr. Jospin in quitting the leadership of the Communist Party.

Mrs Christiane Taubirat (Republican Union) 1,8; Mrs. Corinne Lepage (Ecologists) 1,8; Mrs. Christine Boutin (Forum of Social Democrats) 1,3 and Daniel Gluckstein (Workers Party) 1,5 per cent. ENDS FRENCH ELECTIONS 21402