Centrist leader Francois Bayrou has announced his support for Socialist candidate Francois Hollande in Sunday's presidential election.
Mr Bayrou came fifth in the first round of voting, taking 9.1% of the vote.
If his supporters join him in voting for Mr Hollande, it would deal a significant blow to Nicholas Sarkozy's chances for re-election.
Although Mr Bayrou once served with the president in a right-wing cabinet, he says he has gone too far to the right.
He said he was "not making any voting recommendation", but accused Mr Sarkozy of abandoning European values and moving too close to the far-right position on immigration.
Mr Hollande is leading in opinion polls ahead of Sunday's run-off, although he told French radio that both the final stretch of campaigning and voter turnout could affect the result.
President Sarkozy said on Thursday that it would be a close-run contest and no French election had ever been so "undecided".
He has been courting the votes of the supporters of far-right leader Marine Le Pen, but she has already said she will be leaving her ballot blank rather than vote for Mr Sarkozy or his rival.
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