Voter turnout in the first round of French presidential elections on Sunday stood at 73,87% at 5 pm local time, three hours before the last polling stations were due to close in continental France, daily Le Monde said, quoting French Interior Ministry data.

The figure is already higher than the 73% registered at the end of the day in the first round of the presidential polls in 2002, and could beat the 84,8% record registered in 1965, the daily said.

Public opinion surveys carried out by local pollsters CSA, IPSOS and IFOP showed final turnout on Sunday ranging between 85% and 87%.

Close to 44,5 million French voters are eligible to cast their ballots on Sunday, another record.

Polling stations opened at 8 a.m. local time in continental France and will close at 6 p.m. in rural regions and 8 p.m. in the big cities.

A dozen candidates are vying for a place in the run-offs that will decide a successor to Jacques Chirac, retiring after 12 years at the helm of the country, but only four are credited with strong chances to progress.

Centre-right candidate Nicolas Sarkozy, the former finance and interior minister, running on a platform that focuses on reforming the floundering French social model, cutting taxes and pushing free-market reforms, is the front-runner.

Socialist candidate Segolene Royal is close on his heels, offering to reverse some of the reforms passed during Chirac's two terms in office, as well as raising the minimum wage.

The surprise third is Francois Bayrou, who is trying to break down the traditional bipolar model and bridge the divide between the neo-Gaullists and Socialists with a mix of the two.

Although less likely to make it to the run-offs than the two traditional candidates, according to the polls, he is the only one that could defeat either one if he makes it.

Far-right candidate Jean Marie Le Pen is running for president for a fifth time and still has strong support for his anti-immigration policies, but public opinion surveys suggest he is unlikely to enjoy the same success as last time around, when he made it to the run-offs only to be soundly beaten by the incumbent Chirac.

The outcome is too close to call, with 40% of prospective voters uncertain whom they would vote for as late as Friday, but whoever wins will have usher in wide-ranging changes to revive a stagnating economy.

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