Claude Meisch (born 27 November 1971, in

Pétange Pétange (; lb, Péiteng, ; german: Petingen) is a commune and town in south-western Luxembourg. It is part of the canton of Esch-sur-Alzette. Pétange lies on the borders with both Belgium and France. , the town of Pétange, which lies in the ...

) is a Luxembourg politician with a degree in financial mathematics from Trier university. Meisch was appointed Minister of Education in 2013 in the government of Xavier Bettel. He has been a member of the

Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures. Description Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourbon R ...

from 1999 to 2013 and Mayor of Differdange since 2002. He was President of the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

(DP) from 2004 until 2013, of which he has been a member since 1994. Born in

, in the south-west of the country, Meisch attended the town's Lycée technique Mathias-Adam, before studying at the University of Trier, in Germany. After graduating, he worked for the

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...

Banque de Luxembourg. Meisch was Vice-President of the

Democratic and Liberal Youth The Democratic and Liberal Youth (french: Jeunesse Démocrate et Libérale) is the youth wing of the Democratic Party of Luxembourg. It is a member of European Liberal Youth, the youth wing of the European Liberal Democrat and Reform Party. ...

, the DP's youth wing, from 1995 until 2000. Meisch ran for the Chamber of Deputies, to represent

Sud Sud or SUD may refer to: Places * Sud (Chamber of Deputies of Luxembourg constituency), a constituency in Luxembourg * Sud (department), an administrative subdivision of Haiti * Sud Department (Ivory Coast), defunct administrative subdivision of I ...

, in the 1999 election. Meisch finished sixth amongst DP candidates, with the top four being elected. However, the election saw the DP become

kingmakers A kingmaker is a person or group that has great influence on a royal or political succession, without themselves being a viable candidate. Kingmakers may use political, monetary, religious and military means to influence the succession. Origina ...

, giving them enough leverage over the

Christian Social People's Party The Christian Social People's Party ( lb, Chrëschtlech Sozial Vollekspartei, french: Parti populaire chrétien-social, german: Christlich Soziale Volkspartei), abbreviated to CSV or PCS, is the largest political party in Luxembourg. The party f ...

(CSV) to allow them to appoint seven Democratic deputies, including Henri Grethen and

Eugène Berger Eugène Berger (4 December 1960 – 21 January 2020) was a politician from Luxembourg. Berger studied to become a teacher, and worked in this profession from 1988 to 1994. In 1994, he was elected to the Chamber of Deputies for the Democratic Par ...

, to the new government. Grethen insisted that Berger be appointed along with him, specifically so that Meisch could enter the Chamber. With Grethen and Berger required to vacate their seats to take up their government positions, Meisch filled in the gap and entered the Chamber of Deputies on 12 August 1999. In the 2004 legislative election, Meisch was re-elected to the Chamber directly, placing second amongst DP candidates in an election that saw the party's representation from Sud reduced from four to two. The result was bad for the DP across the country, losing five seats and seeing them replaced as the

's (CSV) coalition partners by the LSAP. After the election, Lydie Polfer resigned as DP President, having served the term limit imposed by the party's statutes. Meisch was the only candidate put forward to replace her, and recorded a 90% vote in his favour (between him and

none of the above "None of the above" (NOTA), or none for short, also known as "against all" or a "scratch" vote, is a ballot option in some jurisdictions or organizations, designed to allow the voter to indicate disapproval of the candidates in a voting system. ...

), holding the position since 10 October 2004. The 2005 election to Differdange communal council saw Meisch score an 'historic' victory, in leading the DP to buck the national trend and greatly increase their vote: winning 43% of the vote and winning eight seats. Meisch thus remained as mayor, heading a coalition with the Greens, although the size of the victory allowed Meisch to choose his coalition partner from any of the other three parties. In the 2009 legislative election, Meisch was re-elected, winning more votes that any other Democratic candidate in the entire country, and winning more than twice as many votes as

, who placed second on the DP list in Sud. The party nationwide fell 1.1% of the vote and lost a seat. Immediately after the election, Meisch ruled out a coalition with the CSV, so the DP continued in opposition. In 2020, Meisch was at the centre of controversy when, as Minister of Education, he forced the Luxembourgish public schools to reopen in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic despite protests from the teachers union (SNE) and an online petition from 23,000 concerned parents urging him not to do so. A spokesperson for the Ministry of Education stated that "parents have no say in the matter". In July 2021, in response to the effects of stress and emotional insecurity caused by the covid-pandemic, Claude Meisch as Minister of National Education, Children and Youth, inaugurated the ''Achtsamkeitspfad'' open-air ''

mindfulness Mindfulness is the practice of purposely bringing one's attention to the present-moment experience without evaluation, a skill one develops through meditation or other training. Mindfulness derives from ''sati'', a significant element of Hind ...

'' trail at the Munsbach Castle, designed and created by the Center for Social-Emotional Development (CDSE) to reinforce psychic balance, the first meditation concept of its kind in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. Claude Meisch congratulated the CDSE for their initiative to promote awareness of emotional skills and well-being, and thanked the commune of Schuttrange for their support.

Footnotes

External links

Chamber of Deputies official website biography
, - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Meisch, Claude Mayors of places in Luxembourg Members of the Chamber of Deputies (Luxembourg) from Sud Councillors in Differdange Democratic Party (Luxembourg) politicians Luxembourgian economists 1971 births Living people People from Pétange University of Trier alumni