President Nicolas Sarkozy's approval rating continued to rebound ahead of a 2012 election, a new poll found on Saturday, vaulting France's centre-right leader to his highest popularity rating since last August, according to Reuters. The survey, carried out by pollster Ifop and to be published in Sunday's La Journal du Dimanche newspaper, showed Sarkozy had surged six points to 36 percent, the latest evidence of a rebound in his popularity. Earlier this week, a separate poll showed an almost identical 5 point rise to 35 percent for Sarkozy. Sarkozy's approval rating hit its nadir, swooning to 28 percent in April, amid widespread disappointment over the economy. But the Socialist opposition has since been roiled by the May arrest of former International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn -- once seen as a potential standard-bearer for the party -- on charges of attempted rape. Despite the hints of a rebound for the French president, another recent poll indicated he would be soundly beaten by Socialist Francois Hollande in the second-round of a two-stage election -- losing by a 14-point margin.
