Philippe Desmazes, AFP / Getty Images
French Socialist Party candidate François Hollande swept Nicolas Sarkozy from office Sunday in an election that many have said could change the political face of France and Europe. Accoring to the French exit-poll numbers, Hollande won with 52 percent of the vote to Sarkozy’s 48 percent. Polls had shown for months that Hollande had a healthy lead on the incumbent, but Sarkozy, who has been called the least-popular French president to ever try for a second term, remained defiant to the end. Crowds gathered at the Socialist Party headqurters in Paris as results came in. Sarkozy conceded defeat as the day moved on, saying, "I carry the entire responsibility for this defeat ... I'm not a man who does not accept his responsibilities," He added, "I'm ready to become a French person amongst French people."