Seventy per cent of French people believe outgoing Socialist leader Francois Hollande was a “bad president”, according to a new poll published on Thursday.
The 62-year-old decided not to seek re-election in December, bowing to the inevitable in the face of catastrophic approval ratings that showed just 4% of the population approved of him at one point.
His five-year term has been marked by terror attacks, stubbornly high unemployment and revelations about his private life that saw him photographed cheating on his partner in January 2014.
Although 70% of respondents told pollster Odoxo that they viewed him as a bad president, the survey of 1,001 people taken at the start of April showed parts of his legacy are seen positively.
A majority (54%) judged his security policies and social reforms such as bringing in gay marriage favourably, but on the economy, only 16% approved of his approach.
France goes to the polls on April 23 for the first round of a two-stage election to choose a new leader.
Independent centrist Emmanuel Macron, a 39-year-old former protégé of Hollande, is seen as the frontrunner, followed by far-right leader Marine Le Pen and scandal-hit right-winger Francois Fillon.