France ? Partial results in France’s municipal elections on Sunday showed President Nicolas Sarkozy’s conservative party headed toward defeat and losing control of key cities, a new setback for a leader beset by sinking support.

Officials sought to downplay the projected poor showing by candidates from Sarkozy’s conservative UMP party in a string of large cities – saying not too much should be read into what were local elections for mayors and city councilors.

With 89 percent of the vote counted, official results showed parties of the left leading just slightly, with 48.7 percent of the overall vote to 47.6 percent for the right.

Paris and Lyon remained in Socialist hands, and the city of Toulouse fell out of conservative control.

The municipal elections have less to do with party affiliation than other elections, and most voters say they cast their ballots based on local issues such as parks, public transport and garbage collection.