PARIS, Nov. 20 (Xinhua) -- Former French prime minister Francois Fillon finished first out of seven contenders in the first round of the conservative primary on Sunday, making a surprise lead in the competition in which ex-president Nicolas Sarkozy was knocked out, partial results showed.
According to first results based on 8,400 polling stations out of a total 10,228, Fillon was seen taking 44 percent of the vote and making a large lead to former foreign minister Alain Juppe's 28.1 percent.
Ex-head of state Sarkozy ranked the third, collecting 22.1 percent of Sunday's first round vote.
