The return of Nicolas Sarkozy will reinvigorate French politics, and marks the start of what promises to be an exciting countdown to the next presidential election in 2017.
There is no certainty, but it now looks more than likely that Mr Sarkozy will take the reins of the centre-right opposition UMP party when it holds its leadership contest in November.
If that happens, then an opposition that has been toothless since the last election might finally start to bite.
But ironically there is another potential beneficiary from a “Sarko revival”, and that is his arch-rival President Francois Hollande.
The speed and glee with which the ruling party reacted to news of the ex-president’s comeback show how much it needs its primary hate figure.
An unpopular, faction-ridden government can at last unite against a man whose return — ministers know well — will provoke more dismay than delight among many voters.
Because two-and-a-half years after he stepped back from the fray, the country remains as divided as ever about their one-time leader, BBC informs.
