French first lady Carla Bruni said today she will never let the media film or photograph her baby, which is due just months before her husband President Nicolas Sarkozy seeks re-election.

"I will do everything I can to protect this child... I will never show photos of this child, I will never expose this child," Bruni told TF1 television.

The supermodel-turned-singer said she had made a "serious mistake" the one time she let her ten-year-old son from a previous relationship be exposed to the glare of the media spotlight.

This was when she visited the Petra archaeological site in Jordan during a visit there with Sarkozy during their whirlwind courtship before their marriage in 2008.

Bruni said she did not know if her new baby, which is due next month, was a boy or a girl.

Sarkozy is widely expected to run for re-election in April next year, and some political commentators have predicted that a new baby could help boost his disastrous polling numbers as he tries to win back lost support.

The 56-year-old Sarkozy has three sons aged 14, 25 and 26 from two previous marriages.

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