Jacques Médecin (5 May 1928 – 17 November 1998) was a French politician. A member of the Gaullist party RPR, he succeeded his father Jean Médecin as mayor of the city of

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

of the town. He studied law in Paris and worked for several years as a journalist. He was elected mayor of Nice in 1966 after his father died in office, and member of Parliament the year after (positions he held simultaneously). He was also elected as General councillor, then president of the General Council of

Alpes-Maritimes Alpes-Maritimes (; ; ; ) is a Departments of France, department of France located in the country's southeast corner, on the France–Italy border, Italian border and Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean coast. Part of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'A ...

, the department surrounding Nice. Additionally, he served as Secretary of State for Tourism in

Jacques Chirac Jacques René Chirac (, ; ; 29 November 193226 September 2019) was a French politician who served as President of France from 1995 to 2007. He was previously Prime Minister of France from 1974 to 1976 and 1986 to 1988, as well as Mayor of Pari ...

's government from 1976 to 1977. Médecin was challenged in the first round of the 1977 municipal elections, and accused of links with former members of the OAS terrorist group which, it was claimed, had helped OAS member and notorious bank robber Albert Spaggiari to escape. Later, when Médecin was criticized for positions that were widely seen as racist, he responded that he shared almost "99% of the views" of the far right National Front party, and called the party's leader

Jean-Marie Le Pen Jean Louis Marie Le Pen (20 June 1928 – 7 January 2025), commonly known as Jean-Marie Le Pen (), was a French politician, lawyer and activist. He founded the far-right National Front (now National Rally) party and served as the party's presi ...

an "old friend". He was a supporter of the

apartheid Apartheid ( , especially South African English: , ; , ) was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. It was characterised by an ...

regime in South Africa, and in 1974 proposed a town-twinning link between Nice and Cape Town. In the 1980s Médecin became the target of corruption allegations, following an exposé of judicial and police wrongdoing in Nice by British novelist Graham Greene. Accusations of political corruption against him grew through the decade, and Médecin fled France in 1990. He was finally arrested in

Uruguay Uruguay, officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast, while bordering the Río de la Plata to the south and the A ...

in 1993 and was extradited to France in 1994. He was convicted of several counts of corruption and associated crimes, and sentenced to prison. Médecin returned to Uruguay following his release from prison. He died in Punta del Este, Uruguay, in November 1998, of cardiac arrest. Outside politics, Médecin was the author of a noted book on the cuisine of the Nice region, published in English translation by

Penguin Books Penguin Books Limited is a Germany, German-owned English publishing, publishing house. It was co-founded in 1935 by Allen Lane with his brothers Richard and John, as a line of the publishers the Bodley Head, only becoming a separate company the ...

in 1983, and reissued by ''Grub Street'' in 2002. In the context of an article about different philosophies on the preparation of salade niçoise, chef and food writer for the ''

Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and also published digitally that focuses on business and economic Current affairs (news format), current affairs. Based in London, the paper is owned by a Jap ...

'' Rowley Leigh wrote of the book: "Things changed in 1983 with the publication of the English translation of ''Cuisine Niçoise: Recipes from a Mediterranean Kitchen'' by one Jacques Médecin. In spite of the fact that Médecin was a famously racist mayor of Nice who was extradited from South America in order to face trial on corruption charges, the book, unlike its author, was a delight... However crooked Médecin had been, none of us doubted his cooking."Leigh, Rowley. "All things Nice: Salade Niçoise." Financial Times, 23 July 2011. Retrieved 24 July 2011 at: http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/2/4eb17ce0-b286-11e0-8784-00144feabdc0.html#axzz1T1xJG9gQ

Political career

Governmental functions Secretary of State for Tourism : 1976–1977 Electoral mandates ''National Assembly of France'' Member of the National Assembly of France for

: 1967–1988. Elected in 1967, reelected in 1968, 1973, 1978, 1981, 1986. ''General Council'' President of the General Council of

: 1973–1990 (Resignation). Reelected in 1976, 1979, 1982, 1985, 1988. General councillor of

: 1961–1990 (Resignation). Reelected in 1979, 1985. ''

Municipal Council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, borough cou ...

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

Nice Nice ( ; ) is a city in and the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative city limits, with a population of nearly one million Nice Nice ( ; ) is a city in and the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative city limits, with a population of nearly one millionObituary in the ''New York Times''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Medecin, Jacques 1928 births 1998 deaths Politicians from Nice Rally for the Republic politicians Politicians of the French Fifth Republic Mayors of Nice French politicians convicted of corruption French prisoners and detainees People extradited from Uruguay People extradited to France