Francois Fillon was fighting to keep his embattled French presidential bid alive on Monday as former president Nicolas Sarkozy piled pressure on him ahead of a crisis meeting of their rightwing Republicans party. The conservative Fillon, 63, was once a clear favourite to win France's two-stage election in April and May but his campaign is mired in accusations he used public funds to pay his wife for a fake parliamentary job. Waiting in the wings is another former prime minister, Alain Juppe, whom Fillon beat in a primary vote to chose the candidate for the conservative Les Republicans party in November.



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