French election race gets personal

PARIS, France -- French President Jacques Chirac has accused his election opponents of using "fascist" methods.

His comments came on Monday -- a day after his main rival, Prime Minister Lionel Jospin, called him tired and old.

In remarks widely reported by French media, the Socialist prime minister said Chirac had "lost a lot of his energy and force."

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"He is tired, old, the victim of a certain wear-and-tear," Jospin told a plane filled with reporters on the way back from a campaign trip to the French island of Reunion on Sunday.

Chirac, 69, who is fighting his fourth presidential campaign, is known for his ease on the campaign trail -- endlessly shaking hands, stopping for a chat or hugging a baby.

His critics say he is not showing the same energy this time around.

The conservative president, meanwhile, had his say in a full-page interview published in Monday's edition of the right-leaning Figaro newspaper.

"Certain candidates favor aggressiveness, arrogance and contempt," Chirac said.

He spoke about the allegations of corruption that have plagued him for years, saying that attempts to drag the scandals into the election campaign "are the methods of extremists and fascists."

"For months we have seen the resurgence of old methods that consist of dirtying a man for political ends, due to an inability to defeat him any other way," Chirac said.

Chirac and Jospin have run France for the past five years under a tense power-sharing relationship known as "cohabitation."

They are now locked in a tight battle for the two-round presidential vote to be held in April and May, with recent polls show Jospin edging ahead.

There are nearly 20 candidates vying to compete in the first round of the election on April 21. Chirac and Jospin are likely to face each other in the second round on May 5.