PARIS, May 5 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - French far-right leader Jean-Marie Le Pen admitted his defeat at the hands of incumbent President Jacques Chirac Sunday, calling it a defeat for "the hopes of the French."
French voters overwhelmingly re-elected Chirac Sunday, giving him more than 80 percent of the vote in a crushing victory against Le Pen, according to computer estimates, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Carried by support from across the mainstream political spectrum and following an election campaign marked by mass street protests against Le Pen's anti-Europe and anti-immigrant views, Chirac won 81.7-82.1 percent of the vote, according to estimates from the three main French polling institutes.
It was the biggest margin of victory ever in French presidential elections.
Le Pen was credited with 17.9-18.3 percent of the vote, just slightly more than he scored in the April 21 first round election.
The landslide defeat of Le Pen and his National Front set off celebrations across France, with a large crowd gathering at Paris' Place de la Republique to fete Chirac.
Le Pen, however, tried to brush off the rejection and said his party was looking forward to a solid showing in legislative elections next month.
"We are very confident about the future," he said in a post-vote press conference.
