politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking ...

Member of the European Parliament A Member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament. When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the ECSC) first met in 1952, its ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

Justice Justice, in its broadest sense, is the principle that people receive that which they deserve, with the interpretation of what then constitutes "deserving" being impacted upon by numerous fields, with many differing viewpoints and perspective ...

Minister of State Minister of State is a title borne by politicians in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a Minister of State is a Junior Minister of government, who is assigned to assist a specific Cabinet Minister. In ...

Tunisian Revolution The Tunisian Revolution, also called the Jasmine Revolution, was an intensive 28-day campaign of civil resistance. It included a series of street demonstrations which took place in Tunisia, and led to the ousting of longtime president Zine El ...

2012 French legislative election Legislative elections took place on 10 and 17 June 2012 (and on other dates for small numbers of voters outside metropolitan France) to select the members of the 14th National Assembly of the Fifth Republic, a little over a month after the Fr ...

Pyrénées-Atlantiques Pyrénées-Atlantiques (; Gascon Occitan: ''Pirenèus Atlantics''; eu, Pirinio Atlantiarrak or ) is a department in the southwest corner of France and of the region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. Named after the Pyrenees mountain range and the Atlant ...

member of the European Parliament A Member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament. When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the ECSC) first met in 1952, its ...

Saint-Jean-de-Luz Saint-Jean-de-Luz (; eu, Donibane Lohitzune,Donibane Lohitzune
Rally for the Republic (1999–2002), an incarnation of the Gaullist party, and was the first woman to chair a major French political party. She has remained a leading

Gaullist Gaullism (french: link=no, Gaullisme) is a French political stance based on the thought and action of World War II French Resistance leader Charles de Gaulle, who would become the founding President of the Fifth French Republic. De Gaulle with ...

after the RPR merged into the UMP and was seen as a rival to Nicolas Sarkozy before and after his election as president in 2007, although direct confrontation was always avoided. Alliot-Marie is a

law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...

and

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

scholar. Her companion is

Patrick Ollier Patrick Ollier (born 17 December 1944) is a French politician. He is the Mayor of Rueil-Malmaison. He was a national assembly deputy for Hauts-Alpes's 2nd constituency from 1988 to 2002, as a member of the UMP. Secondly for Hauts-de-Seine's ...

, Minister in charge of Relations with Parliament in the Fillon II government; both were ministers simultaneously for a few months in 2010–2011, the first time a couple ever sat in a French government.

Early life

Michèle Marie was born on 10 September 1946 in

Villeneuve-le-Roi Villeneuve-le-Roi () is a Communes of France, commune in the southern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the Kilometre zero#France, centre of Paris. The early 19th-century French orientalist Jean-Baptiste Rousseau (orientalist), Jean-Ba ...

(then in the

Seine-et-Oise Seine-et-Oise () was the former department of France encompassing the western, northern and southern parts of the metropolitan area of Paris.department, now in the Val-de-Marne department since 1968). Her father is Bernard Marie (1918-2015), who was a famous international rugby referee, the French National Assembly Deputy for the Pyrénées-Atlantiques' 4th constituency (1967-1981, department named Basses-Pyrénées until 1969), and the Mayor of Biarritz (1977-1991); and her mother is Renée Leyko and is of Polish descent. She attended the High School of the Folie Saint James in Neuilly-sur-Seine and then began her studies at the

Paris Law Faculty The Faculty of Law of Paris (french: Faculté de droit de Paris), called from the late 1950s to 1970 the Faculty of Law and Economics of Paris, is the second-oldest faculty of law in the world and one of the four and eventually five faculties ...

in the now-defunct

University of Paris , image_name = Coat of arms of the University of Paris.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of Arms , latin_name = Universitas magistrorum et scholarium Parisiensis , motto = ''Hic et ubique terrarum'' (Latin) , mottoeng = Here and a ...

, continuing at the in that same university. After then- Education Minister

Edgar Faure Edgar Jean Faure (; 18 August 1908 – 30 March 1988) was a French politician, lawyer, essayist, historian and memoirist who served as Prime Minister of France in 1952 and again between 1955 and 1956.private law,

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

, and

legal history Legal history or the history of law is the study of how law has evolved and why it has changed. Legal history is closely connected to the development of civilisations and operates in the wider context of social history. Certain jurists and histo ...

at both Panthéon-Assas University, earning a

Doctor of Law A Doctor of Law is a degree in law. The application of the term varies from country to country and includes degrees such as the Doctor of Juridical Science (J.S.D. or S.J.D), Juris Doctor (J.D.), Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), and Legum Doctor (LL ...

degree there in 1973 with her thesis ''Salarié actionnaire'' (English: "Employee Shareholders"), and Pantheon-Sorbonne University, where she earned a Doctorate in Political Science in 1982 and defended her thesis ''Décisions politiques et structures administratives'' (English: "Political Decisions and Administrative Structures"). During her university years, she was a member of the right-wing student union '' UNI''. She also holds a ''Certificat d'aptitude à la profession d'avocat'' (English: "Certificate of Aptitude for Practicing Law"), also known as a CAPA; a certificate in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

n laws and economics; and a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

in

ethnology Ethnology (from the grc-gre, ἔθνος, meaning 'nation') is an academic field that compares and analyzes the characteristics of different peoples and the relationships between them (compare cultural, social, or sociocultural anthropology). ...

. Before her career in politics, she was a senior lecturer at the Paris-I University (Panthéon-Sorbonne), and also spent some time practicing law. She is also a recipient of the Faculty of Law and Economics.

University, private sector, and early political career

During her university studies, Alliot-Marie (then still known as Michèle Marie) began having a relationship with her then-law professor , who was also chief of staff to then- Education Minister (1968-1969)

Edgar Faure Edgar Jean Faure (; 18 August 1908 – 30 March 1988) was a French politician, lawyer, essayist, historian and memoirist who served as Prime Minister of France in 1952 and again between 1955 and 1956.Panthéon-Assas University and then the University Paris I Panthéon-Sorbonne between 1970 and 1984, before becoming a ''

Maître de conférences ''Maître'' (spelled ''Maitre'' according to post-1990 spelling rules) is a commonly used honorific for lawyers, judicial officers and notaries in France, Belgium, Switzerland and French-speaking parts of Canada. It is often written in its abbrev ...

'' (equal to an Associate Professor) in public law from 1984, a position she left when she got elected to the French National Assembly in 1986. In 1972, she became a technical adviser to

Edgar Faure Edgar Jean Faure (; 18 August 1908 – 30 March 1988) was a French politician, lawyer, essayist, historian and memoirist who served as Prime Minister of France in 1952 and again between 1955 and 1956.Minister of Social Affairs until 1976; and then she was a technical adviser to then-Secretary of State for Universities Jean-Pierre Soisson. She then became an adviser to then- Minister of Departments and Overseas Territories Bernard Stasi from 1973 to 1974, and then to then- Secretary of State for Tourism in 1974. She then became the Chief of Staff to then-Secretary of State and Minister of Universities from 1976 to 1978 before working in the

private sector The private sector is the part of the economy, sometimes referred to as the citizen sector, which is owned by private groups, usually as a means of establishment for profit or non profit, rather than being owned by the government. Employment The ...

as an administrator of CEO of the company ''Uta-Indemnité'' between 1979 and 1985. She also practiced as a lawyer during this time.

Career

Local politics

Alliot-Marie started her electoral career in 1983 as Municipal Councillor for the

Basque Basque may refer to: * Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France * Basque language, their language Places * Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France * Basque Country (autonomous co ...

-area village of

Ciboure Ciboure (; ,ZIBURU

Labourd and now in the

Pyrénées-Atlantiques Pyrénées-Atlantiques (; Gascon Occitan: ''Pirenèus Atlantics''; eu, Pirinio Atlantiarrak or ) is a department in the southwest corner of France and of the region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. Named after the Pyrenees mountain range and the Atlant ...

department), located south of her father's political base of Biarritz, near

Saint-Jean-de-Luz Saint-Jean-de-Luz (; eu, Donibane Lohitzune,Donibane Lohitzune
Didier Borotra of the UDF- CDS, she passed draft legislation in opposition to build a hotel-casino on the front of the main beach of the town, which caused a collapse of the council. Early municipal elections in 1991 were won by Didier Borotra, who united the local UDF, two elected Socialists, and

Basque nationalists Basque nationalism ( eu, eusko abertzaletasuna ; es, nacionalismo vasco; french: nationalisme basque) is a form of nationalism that asserts that Basques, an ethnic group Indigenous peoples, indigenous to the western Pyrenees, are a nation an ...

, who provided additional support. She left the council at the same time that her father was defeated as Mayor. She then served as Mayor of Saint-Jean-de-Luz from 1995 until 2002, and as First Deputy Mayor since then. She was also a member and a Vice President of the General Council of

Pyrénées-Atlantiques Pyrénées-Atlantiques (; Gascon Occitan: ''Pirenèus Atlantics''; eu, Pirinio Atlantiarrak or ) is a department in the southwest corner of France and of the region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. Named after the Pyrenees mountain range and the Atlant ...

between 1994 and 2001.

National politics

Alliot-Marie was elected to the National Assembly to represent

Pyrénées-Atlantiques Pyrénées-Atlantiques (; Gascon Occitan: ''Pirenèus Atlantics''; eu, Pirinio Atlantiarrak or ) is a department in the southwest corner of France and of the region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. Named after the Pyrenees mountain range and the Atlant ...

in 1986 as a member of the

Gaullist Gaullism (french: link=no, Gaullisme) is a French political stance based on the thought and action of World War II French Resistance leader Charles de Gaulle, who would become the founding President of the Fifth French Republic. De Gaulle with ...

Rally for the Republic (RPR). She has been seating in the Assembly ever since, except when she sat in the government; this is due to the French law on ''

Cumul des mandats A dual mandate is the practice in which elected officials serve in more than one elected or other public position simultaneously. This practice is sometimes known as double jobbing in Britain and ''cumul des mandats'' in France; not to be confused ...

'' (literally: "accumulation of mandates") that prohibit

cabinet ministers A cabinet is a body of high-ranking state officials, typically consisting of the executive branch's top leaders. Members of a cabinet are usually called cabinet ministers or secretaries. The function of a cabinet varies: in some countrie ...

from simultaneously serving as deputies in the French National Assembly; her alternate as Deputy was Daniel Poulou, who served from 1993 to 1995 and again from 2002 to 2011 when she served as Cabinet Minister. She served as Secretary of State (junior minister) for Schools under the Minister of National Education in Jacques Chirac's second government from 1986 to 1988 and as Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports in

Édouard Balladur Édouard Balladur (; born 2 May 1929) is a French politician who served as Prime Minister of France under François Mitterrand from 29 March 1993 to 17 May 1995. He unsuccessfully ran for president in the 1995 French presidential election, c ...

's government from 1993 to 1995. From 1989 to 1993, she was a

Member of the European Parliament A Member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament. When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the ECSC) first met in 1952, its ...

as a member of the

political group A political group is a group consisting of political parties or legislators of aligned ideologies. A technical group is similar to a political group, but with members of differing ideologies. International terms Equivalent terms are used differ ...

European Democratic Alliance.

President of the RPR

In 1999, "MAM" entered the challenge for the presidency of the RPR against Chirac's candidate and, to most insiders' surprise, won by a landslide, becoming the first woman to lead a major French political party. She remained President of the party until 2002 when it merged with the

Union for a Popular Movement The Union for a Popular Movement (french: link=no, Union pour un mouvement populaire, ; UMP, ) was a centre-right List of political parties in France, political party in France that was one of the two major party, major contemporary political pa ...

(UMP), a merger she opposed at first.

Defense ministership

Alliot-Marie was Minister of Defense during Jacques Chirac's second presidential term, France's first woman in this position. Between May and June 2002, she was also in charge of

Veterans' Affairs Veterans' affairs is an area of public policy concerned with relations between a government and its communities of military veterans. Some jurisdictions have a designated government agency or department, a Department of Veterans' Affairs, Minist ...

. ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also r ...

'' magazine declared her the 57th most powerful woman in the world in 2006 and the 11th in 2007. She kept the Defense portfolio in Jean-Pierre Raffarin's three governments and in

Dominique de Villepin Dominique Marie François René Galouzeau de Villepin (; born 14 November 1953) is a French politician who served as Prime Minister of France from 31 May 2005 to 17 May 2007 under President Jacques Chirac. In his career working at the Ministry ...

's government. She remained a leading Gaullist after the RPR merger into the UMP, and created her own movement within the party, Le Chêne (The Oak). Although she publicly considered competing with Nicolas Sarkozy for the UMP nomination in the 2007 presidential election, she ruled herself out of the running in January 2007 and endorsed Sarkozy. Sarkozy and Alliot-Marie had a history of disagreements in the party's National Council.

Interior and Justice ministerships

After Sarkozy's election as president, Alliot-Marie was appointed Minister of the Interior, the Overseas and Local Communities in

François Fillon François Charles Armand Fillon (; born 4 March 1954) is a retired French politician who served as Prime Minister of France from 2007 to 2012 under President Nicolas Sarkozy. He was the nominee of the Republicans (previously known as the Union ...

's government, being the first woman to hold the position. Two years later, after the 2009 European Parliament election, she was appointed Minister of Justice and Liberties and Keeper of the Seals and was bestowed the title of Minister of State, which gave her the most senior rank in the government after the Prime Minister. She was made a Vice President of the UMP the same year.

Foreign Affairs ministership

In November 2010, Alliot-Marie was appointed Minister of Foreign and European Affairs, remaining Minister of State and being again the first female holder of the office. When civil unrest began in Tunisia in early 2011, Alliot-Marie came under scrutiny for going on vacation there during the events, as she had frequently done in the past. She further caused controversy when she told the National Assembly that French riot police could be offered to help restore order; she was specifically criticised for allegedly sending

teargas Tear gas, also known as a lachrymator agent or lachrymator (), sometimes colloquially known as "mace" after the early commercial aerosol, is a chemical weapon that stimulates the nerves of the lacrimal gland in the eye to produce tears. In ad ...

to Tunisia as late as January 2011. Before leaving office, she proposed sending

paratrooper A paratrooper is a military parachutist—someone trained to parachute into a military operation, and usually functioning as part of an airborne force. Military parachutists (troops) and parachutes were first used on a large scale during Worl ...

s to quell the protests. Her situation embarrassing the government, she resigned as Foreign Minister on 27 February 2011 after only a few months in office. She was succeeded by outgoing Defense Minister and former Prime Minister

Alain Juppé Alain Marie Juppé (; born 15 August 1945) is a French politician. A member of The Republicans (France), The Republicans, he was Prime Minister of France from 1995 to 1997 under President Jacques Chirac, during which period he faced 1995 strikes ...

. In the

2012 French legislative election Legislative elections took place on 10 and 17 June 2012 (and on other dates for small numbers of voters outside metropolitan France) to select the members of the 14th National Assembly of the Fifth Republic, a little over a month after the Fr ...

s, she lost her seat as Deputy (MP) for the 6th constituency of

Pyrénées-Atlantiques Pyrénées-Atlantiques (; Gascon Occitan: ''Pirenèus Atlantics''; eu, Pirinio Atlantiarrak or ) is a department in the southwest corner of France and of the region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. Named after the Pyrenees mountain range and the Atlant ...

to Socialist Party candidate in the second round, 48.38% to Alaux's 51.62% share of the vote.

Political career

Ministerial offices * Secretary of State for Education: 1986–1988. * Minister of Youth and Sports: 1993–1995. * Minister of Defense: 2002–2007. * Minister of the Interior, Overseas Territories and Territorial Communities : 2007–2009. * Keeper of the Seals, Minister of State, Minister of Justice and Freedoms: 2009–2010. * Minister of State, Minister of Foreign and European Affairs: 2010–2011 (resignation). Electoral mandates ''European parliament'' * Member of the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...

: 1989-1992 (resignation); since 2014. Elected in 1989, 2014. ''National Assembly'' * Deputy to the National Assembly for

Pyrénées-Atlantiques Pyrénées-Atlantiques (; Gascon Occitan: ''Pirenèus Atlantics''; eu, Pirinio Atlantiarrak or ) is a department in the southwest corner of France and of the region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. Named after the Pyrenees mountain range and the Atlant ...

(6th constituency): elected in March 1986 (became minister in March 1986) / 1988–1993 / elected in March 1993 (became minister in 1993) / 1995–2002 (became minister in 2002) / reelected in 2007 (remained a minister) / 2011-2012 (defeated). Elected in 1986, reelected in 1988, 1993, 1995, 1997, 2002, 2007. ''General Council'' * Vice President of the General Council of

Pyrénées-Atlantiques Pyrénées-Atlantiques (; Gascon Occitan: ''Pirenèus Atlantics''; eu, Pirinio Atlantiarrak or ) is a department in the southwest corner of France and of the region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. Named after the Pyrenees mountain range and the Atlant ...

: 1994–2001. * General Councillor of

Pyrénées-Atlantiques Pyrénées-Atlantiques (; Gascon Occitan: ''Pirenèus Atlantics''; eu, Pirinio Atlantiarrak or ) is a department in the southwest corner of France and of the region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. Named after the Pyrenees mountain range and the Atlant ...

: 1994–2001. ''Municipal Council'' * Mayor of

Saint-Jean-de-Luz Saint-Jean-de-Luz (; eu, Donibane Lohitzune,Donibane Lohitzune
Biarritz: 1989–1991. * Municipal Councillor of

Ciboure Ciboure (; ,ZIBURU

Rally for the Republic: 1999–2002 (party dissolved). Elected in 1999. * Vice President of the

Union for a Popular Movement The Union for a Popular Movement (french: link=no, Union pour un mouvement populaire, ; UMP, ) was a centre-right List of political parties in France, political party in France that was one of the two major party, major contemporary political pa ...

: 2009–2012. * Vice President of The Republicans National Council: since 2015.

Controversy

In 1972, a guard prevented Alliot-Marie from entering the National Assembly chamber because she was wearing pants; women were not allowed to wear pants to work in white-collar government jobs until the late 1960s and not in the Assembly until some years later. In early 2009, Alliot-Marie received an anonymous death threat accompanied by a 9mm-calibre bullet. In 2016, French investigating judge Sabine Kheris requested that a case involving

Dominique de Villepin Dominique Marie François René Galouzeau de Villepin (; born 14 November 1953) is a French politician who served as Prime Minister of France from 31 May 2005 to 17 May 2007 under President Jacques Chirac. In his career working at the Ministry ...

, Michel Barnier and Michèle Alliot-Marie be referred to the Court of Justice of the Republic. These former ministers were suspected of having allowed the exfiltration of the mercenaries responsible for the attack on the Bouaké camp in 2004, killing nine French soldiers. The operation was allegedly intended to justify a response operation against the Laurent Gbagbo government in the context of the 2004 crisis in Ivory Coast.

Personal life

Michèle Marie married anthropologist in 1971, taking the name Michèle Alliot-Marie. They divorced in 1984. In the French media, she is nicknamed "MAM". Since 1988, her life partner has been

Patrick Ollier Patrick Ollier (born 17 December 1944) is a French politician. He is the Mayor of Rueil-Malmaison. He was a national assembly deputy for Hauts-Alpes's 2nd constituency from 1988 to 2002, as a member of the UMP. Secondly for Hauts-de-Seine's ...

, who briefly served as President of the National Assembly in 2007 and subsequently chaired the Assembly's Economy Committee. In November 2010, he was appointed Minister in charge of Relations with Parliament in the Fillon II government. Both were ministers simultaneously for a few months in 2010–2011, the first time a couple ever sat in a French government. Due to her higher public profile, he has been nicknamed "Patrick Ollier-Marie" or "POM".

Decorations and distinctions

Decorations

*

Ordre de l'Etoile d'Anjouan Commandeur ribbon

Commander of the Order of the Star of Anjouan ( Comoros) * Cote d'Ivoire Ordre du merite ivoirien Commandeur ribbon

Commander of the Order of Ivory Merit ( Côte d'Ivoire) * EGY Order of the Republic - Officer BAR

Officer of the Order of the Republic (Egypt) * GAB Order of the Equatorial Star - Commander BAR

Commander of the Order of the Equatorial Star (

Gabon Gabon (; ; snq, Ngabu), officially the Gabonese Republic (french: République gabonaise), is a country on the west coast of Central Africa. Located on the equator, it is bordered by Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the nort ...

) *

Masterful First Class Fins (

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

)

Distinctions

* Prix de la révélation politique de l'année (English: "Price for Political Revelation of the Year") 1999 - Trombinoscope - being elected as President of the Rally for the Republic party * Ministre de l'année (English: "Minister of the Year") 2005 - Trombinoscope

References

Biography

*

Publications

* * * * * * * *

External links

Profile at French National Assembly Website
, - , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Alliot-Marie, Michele 1946 births Living people People from Villeneuve-le-Roi French people of Polish descent Rally for the Republic politicians Union for a Popular Movement politicians Gaullism, a way forward for France French Foreign Ministers French interior ministers French Ministers of Defence French Ministers of Justice French Ministers of Overseas France MEPs for South-West France 2014–2019 Women mayors of places in France Female defence ministers Female foreign ministers Paris 2 Panthéon-Assas University alumni Pantheon-Sorbonne University alumni Pantheon-Sorbonne University faculty The Republicans (France) MEPs Women government ministers of France Women members of the National Assembly (France) Deputies of the 13th National Assembly of the French Fifth Republic Female interior ministers Female justice ministers French women diplomats MEPs for France 1989–1994 20th-century women MEPs for France 21st-century women MEPs for France