On 21 March, the second round of regional elections culminated in a humiliating defeat for French President Nicolas Sarkozy's Union pour un mouvement populaire (UMP) and a victory for the Socialist Party, which Libération describes as "historic." The Left won more than 53% of the vote and control of 21 of the 22 regions in Metropolitan France, while the UMP scored a meager 35% – which prompts the daily to announce: "The triumph of Sarkozyism is at an end. Just three years after his unrelenting presidential campaign, the head of state has come a cropper." The elections were also marked by a remarkably low turnout, with 48% of voters staying away from the polls, and "spectacular gains for the National Front" – the extreme-right party scored more than 20% in several regions. According to Libération, "the results have highlighted the likelihood of a real contest in presidential elections in 2012," and given the steep decline in his popularity, "the distinct possiblity that President Sarkozy may not be re-elected for a second term." None of the 12 UMP ministers who stood in the elections succeeded in obtaining seats – a fact which Libération believes will shortly result in a cabinet reshuffle.
The leader of Greece’s leftist alliance SYRIZA is the new bright hope of Greek politics. Steering a course between pragmatism and the rhetoric of class warfare, he has unsettled Berlin, and not just those who back Angela Merkel's austerity policies. 
Europe’s economic woes have forced us to try to understand the secret Olympian world of global finance. But now that we pay more attention to bond yields and stability mechanisms, isn’t it clear that the experts up on their lofty peaks don’t know what’s going on either? 
This year’s Eurovision Song Contest is hosted by Azerbaijan, a country that is far from being a model democracy. An Estonian journalist takes a critical look at the deferential treatment enjoyed by the regime in Baku.