France's Royal brings Mitterrand into 2007 race

JARNAC, France, Feb 22 (Reuters) On Francois Mitterrand's grave, one wreath stands out among those marking last month's anniversary of his death. Bigger than all others, it is made up of dozens of roses and a label saying simply ''Segolene Royal''.

For Royal, the former president is not just a political idol. He is the mentor who helped form her hopes of becoming France's first woman president in May and the boss whose recognition she craved in the early days of her career.

''She worked hard to get noticed by him,'' Mitterrand's former chief of staff Jean-Claude Colliard said of the time when Royal was a young Mitterrand adviser in the 1980s and managed to impress her idol with her stamina.

Two decades later, Royal is proudly claiming the ''Mitterrand line of descent'' and peppering her speeches with references to modern France's only Socialist president.

She has tried, literally, to walk in his footsteps for example by visiting the Great Wall of China in January, a trip Mitterrand undertook shortly before he was elected in 1981.

Mitterrand friends and analysts are divided over how much the youthful and relatively inexperienced Royal has in common with the former statesman, but they agree the association can help her win votes against conservative rival Nicolas Sarkozy.

''You need this sense of history. It serves her well,'' said Jerome Royer, the Socialist mayor of Jarnac, a picturesque town in France's western Cognac region, which Mitterrand's family home and grave have made a tourist destination.

When he died of cancer in 1996 a year after leaving office, the media focused on the scandals surrounding him, from an illegitimate daughter, to a wire-tapping row and his involvement in the 1985 bombing of the Greenpeace ship Rainbow Warrior.

A decade later, his legacy is seen in a more positive light.

Mitterrand overtook Charles de Gaulle as the most-loved modern French president in a survey 14 months ago, and his widow agreed he had reached new popularity.

''Especially among young people, Mitterrand now serves as reference point,'' Danielle Mitterrand, 82, told Reuters.

SEEKING ATTENTION It was Mitterrand who brought the shy and studious Royal into national politics, putting her on his team when he was elected and making her environment minister in 1992.

''She was very peripheral at the beginning,'' Colliard said.

''But she was very determined and ambitious.

''She produced lots of notes...From time to time, I had calls from prefects (local officials) who wanted to check there was a Ms Royal at the Elysee because they had received demands that seemed so extremely urgent,'' he said. ''She did all that with more determination than other advisers.'' Recognising her ambition, Mitterrand assigned Royal a traditionally conservative constituency in western France in 1988, reportedly telling her: ''You'll lose but that's how one starts off.'' However, Royal scored a surprise victory.

Colliard said Mitterrand appreciated Royal's busy-bee style.

''He liked to help very young collaborators progress...He also had a very charming side with young women.'' After Mitterrand's death, Royal kept a low national profile. She shot into the spotlight in 2004, when she became president of Mitterrand's home region Poitou-Charentes, giving her a boost to win the Socialists' presidential nomination.

BEYOND THE LEFT Royal has conducted an unorthodox campaign, often diverging from her party's official line.

This month, she unveiled 100 proposals ranging from traditional left-wing policies such as an increase in the minimum wage to what some critics branded ''un-Socialist'' plans to send young troublemakers to army camp.

Historians say her strategy to appeal to an electorate beyond the traditional left is not unlike Mitterrand's.

''Mitterrand stood for values of the left but with his personality, temperament and culture, he also represented some of France's conservative tradition,'' said Alain Bergounioux.

Mitterrand earned some criticism from the left when he implemented an economic austerity programme shortly after coming into office, drastically cutting state spending.

Royal's poll ratings have slipped below Sarkozy's in recent weeks, following several gaffes on domestic and foreign policy.

The first round of voting takes place on April 22 and, if no clear winner emerges, a run-off ballot will be held on May 6.

On Monday, Royal spent two hours fielding questions during a prime-time debate with a TV audience on the main TF1 channel.

She avoided her earlier gaffes, portrayed herself as the only candidate capable of bringing real change to France and suggested she had been given a harder time by the media because she was a woman.

Commentators wondered whether she had done enough to reverse her decline in the polls, but her allies have insisted she will bounce back.

Sceptical Socialists think it safer to appeal to higher forces.

In the kitchen of Mitterrand's family home in Jarnac, one visitor has written an urgent message.

''Please, give your support to Segolene. She needs it,'' reads the entry in the visitors' book on the wooden table.

Reuters SY DB0954