Jean-Luc Mélenchon facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Jean-Luc Mélenchon
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Mélenchon in 2022
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| President of the La France Insoumise group in the National Assembly | |
| In office 27 June 2017 – 12 October 2021 |
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| Preceded by | Position established |
| Succeeded by | Mathilde Panot |
| Member of the National Assembly for Bouches-du-Rhône's 4th constituency |
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| In office 21 June 2017 – 21 June 2022 |
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| Preceded by | Patrick Mennucci |
| Succeeded by | Manuel Bompard |
| Member of the European Parliament | |
| In office 14 July 2009 – 18 June 2017 |
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| Constituency | South-West France |
| Minister Delegate for Vocational Education | |
| In office 27 March 2000 – 6 May 2002 |
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| Prime Minister | Lionel Jospin |
| Preceded by | Claude Allègre |
| Succeeded by | Luc Ferry |
| Senator for Essonne | |
| In office 1 October 2004 – 7 January 2010 |
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| In office 2 October 1986 – 27 April 2000 |
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| Personal details | |
| Born |
Jean-Luc Antoine Pierre Mélenchon
19 August 1951 Tangier, Tangier International Zone (current-day Morocco) |
| Political party | La France Insoumise (since 2016) |
| Other political affiliations |
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| Alma mater | University of Franche-Comté |
| Website | |
Jean-Luc Antoine Pierre Mélenchon (French: [ʒɑ̃lyk melɑ̃ʃɔ̃]; born 19 August 1951) is a French politician who has been the de facto leader of La France Insoumise (LFI) since it was established in 2016. He was the deputy in the National Assembly for the 4th constituency of Bouches-du-Rhône from 2017 to 2022 and led the La France Insoumise group in the National Assembly from 2017 to 2021. Mélenchon was previously elected as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) in 2009 and reelected in 2014. He has run for President of France three times, in 2012, 2017 and 2022. In 2022, he came within 1.2 percentage points of reaching the second round in France's two-round voting system.
After joining the Socialist Party (PS) in 1976, Mélenchon was successively elected a municipal councillor of Massy (1983) and general councillor of Essonne (1985). In 1986, he entered the Senate, to which he was reelected in 1995 and 2004. He also served as Minister for Vocational Education between 2000 and 2002 under Minister of National Education Jack Lang in the cohabitation government of Lionel Jospin. He was part of the left-wing of the PS until the Reims Congress of November 2008, when he left the party to found the Left Party with Marc Dolez, a member of the National Assembly. Mélenchon first served as party president before becoming party co-president alongside Martine Billard, a position he held until 2014. As co-president of the Left Party, he joined the electoral coalition of the Left Front before the 2009 European Parliament election in France; he was elected as a MEP in the South-West France constituency and reelected in 2014. He became the Left Front's candidate in the 2012 French presidential election, in which he came in fourth, receiving 11.1% of the first-round vote.
In February 2016, Mélenchon founded La France Insoumise. He stood as a candidate in the 2017 French presidential election, again coming in fourth, with 19.6% of the first-round vote. He became a member of the National Assembly for LFI following the 2017 French legislative election, receiving 59.9% in the second round in the 4th constituency of Bouches-du-Rhône, located in Marseille (France's second-largest city). Mélenchon stood again under the LFI banner in the 2022 French presidential election, coming in third with 21.95% of the vote, just over one point short of qualifying for the second round. After this, he led the newly formed New Ecological and Social People's Union (NUPES) alliance of parties to a second-place performance in the 2022 French legislative election. LFI was confirmed as the largest party of the French left in the 2024 French legislative election, where the left-wing New Popular Front (NFP) achieved a plurality of seats and LFI was confirmed as the largest left-wing group in the National Assembly.
Contents
- Biography
- Early life, education, and early politics (1951–1976)
- Socialist Mitterrandist leader (1976–1986)
- Departure from the Socialists and foundation of the Left Party (2008–2012)
- First presidential candidacy (2012)
- Second presidential candidacy (2017)
- Member of the National Assembly (2017–2022)
- Third presidential candidacy and NUPES (2022–2023)
- Political positions
- Political career offices
- Distinctions
- See also
Biography
Early life, education, and early politics (1951–1976)
Mélenchon was born in Tangier (Tangier International Zone), Morocco. His father, Georges, was a postmaster of Spanish descent, and his mother, Jeanine Bayona, was a primary school teacher of Spanish and Sicilian descent. He grew up in Morocco, until his family moved to France in 1962. Mélenchon was then educated at the Lycée Pierre-Corneille, a state secondary school in Rouen, Normandy. He graduated in 1972. With a degree in philosophy from the University of Franche-Comté in Besançon and having gained a CAPES, he became a teacher before entering politics. He was originally a follower of Pierre Lambert and a member of the Trotskyist movement before supporting François Mitterrand and joining the Socialist Party (PS).
Socialist Mitterrandist leader (1976–1986)
Jean-Luc Mélenchon left Besançon to enter professional life in Lons-le-Saunier (Jura), and joined the Socialist Party (PS) in September 1976. He soon assumed local and departmental responsibilities (deputy section secretary of Montaigu), and developed a federal newspaper that fought for a union between PS and the French Communist Party (PCF). It was at this time that the latter broke the agreements of the union of the left on a joint program of government. He then came to the attention of Claude Germon, mayor of Massy (Essonne) and member of the executive office of the PS responsible for the business section. Without stable work after his application was rejected at the Croix du Jura newspaper, he was hired by Claude Germon to become his private secretary.
He became one of the leading Mitterrandist leaders of the Essonne federation, which led him to the position of first secretary of this federation at the Valence Congress in 1981; he remained in this position until 1986. He positioned himself both against the "Second left" of Michel Rocard and the "Centre of socialist studies, research, and education" (CERES) of Jean-Pierre Chevènement.
He was elected senator during the senatorials of 1986.
Departure from the Socialists and foundation of the Left Party (2008–2012)
At the Reims Congress, in September 2008, the political current "Trait d'union", created after the victory of the "No" in the French European Constitution referendum of 2005, Mélenchon made a new contribution. On the eve of the filing of the motions, an agreement was reached between the seven contributions of the left wing of the PS, and Jean-Luc Mélenchon was one of the signatories of Motion C entitled "A world ahead", led by Benoît Hamon. He described this gathering as a "historic event": For the first time, this motion brought together all the sensibilities of the left wing of the PS, with emblematic personalities like Gérard Filoche, Marie-Noëlle Lienemann, and Paul Quilès.
On 6 November 2008, the Socialist militants voted to decide between 6 motions. The motion supported by Ségolène Royal led with about 29% of the votes cast, while the one led by Benoît Hamon came in fourth with 18.5%. For Jean-Luc Mélenchon, it is a victory of the outgoing majority, which carries 80% of the votes (with the three firsts motions) and, among them, the motion advocating the alliance in the center. Believing themselves too far from this trend to the point that it would not be useful to take part in the congress, Jean-Luc Mélenchon and Marc Dolez announced on 7 November their decision, "out of fidelity to their commitments", and for their independence of action, to leave the Socialist Party, and to create a new movement "without concession facing the right".
They announced "the construction of a new left-wing party", simply called the "Left Party" (on the German model of Die Linke), and called for "the constitution of a left-wing front for the European elections". On 18 November, in a meeting with the French Communist Party, the two parties announced their alliance in the form of a "partnership", within the framework of a "left front for another democratic and social Europe, against the ratification of the Treaty of Lisbon and the current European Treaties". The launch meeting of the Left Party was held on 29 November in Saint-Ouen, in the presence of Die Linke's co-chairman, Oskar Lafontaine.
First presidential candidacy (2012)
Mélenchon was the candidate representing the Left Front (Communist Party of France, Left Party, Unitary Left) in the 2012 French presidential election. He took fourth place and achieved 11.10% of the vote, trailing behind François Hollande, Nicolas Sarkozy, and Marine Le Pen (and their respective parties, the Socialist Party, Union for a Popular Movement, and National Front). In comparison, the winner, François Hollande, received 28.63% of the vote.
Second presidential candidacy (2017)
On 10 February 2016, Melenchon launched the left-wing political platform La France Insoumise ("Unbowed France") during an interview on the French television channel TF1. La France Insoumise was subsequently endorsed by several parties, such as the Left Party and French Communist Party, in addition to members of the Europe Écologie Les Verts such as Sergio Coronado, an assembly member for the 2nd Overseas Constituency, and the mayor of Grenoble, Éric Piolle.
On 12 January 2017, Mélenchon secured the 500 elected sponsors required to be validated by the Constitutional Council. After Benoît Hamon won the nomination for the Parti Socialiste on a left-wing platform, beating former Prime Minister, Manuel Valls, 58–41, Hamon announced on TF1 on 27 February that he and Melenchon had been in talks to form an alliance, but their stances on the European Union separated them, as Melenchon's platform was to renegotiate EU treaties or hold a referendum. France 24 reported following this that, "Adding their scores would place a candidate in first or second place"
Jean-Luc Mélenchon held at a consistent 12% for most of the campaign, until a late upwards surge which put him just behind third place Francois Fillon at 18%. This late surge is mainly due to Mélenchon's performance within the second presidential debate hosted by BFM TV and CNews, where, according to an Elabe poll, he was found the most convincing candidate by 25%. However, he did not qualify for the second round of voting, winning 19% of the vote in the first round, placing fourth.
After the first round, Mélenchon refused to endorse Macron and told his voters that "no vote should go to the National Front", as he had done in 2002. Following constant criticism for this choice, Mélenchon invited members of La France Insoumise to vote on who he will endorse with the choices being "Vote for Emmanuel Macron", "Blank Vote", or "Abstain", with the result being announced on 2 May. 36.12% submitted a blank vote, 34.83% chose to endorse Macron, and 29.05% abstained.
His campaign positions included the intent to establish a Sixth Republic and preserve the environment. According to the NGOs for the development aid Action Against Hunger, Action santé mondiale, CARE France, and ONE Campaign, Jean-Luc Mélenchon was the candidate in the presidential election who is the most engaged regarding international solidarity. Together with other French intellectuals, he vigorously denounces free trade between France and the United States as an example of global exploitation.
Member of the National Assembly (2017–2022)
In June 2017, Mélenchon became a member of the National Assembly for La France Insoumise following his win in the legislative election in the 4th constituency of Bouches-du-Rhône, which covers parts of the centre of Marseille. He won 59.9% of the vote in the second round against En Marche! candidate Corrine Versini. He defeated sitting member Patrick Mennucci in the first round, a notable member of the Socialist Party in Marseille.
His election to the National Assembly drew national media attention. During the examination of the 2017 Labour Law bill, he was remarked in the National Assembly for his multiple interventions, defending the Labour Code status quo along with fellow La France Insoumise members, arguing that flexibilisation would be harmful to workers. He drew attention from the media once more when he came in Parliament with a five euros food shopping bag to denounce a student benefits cut planned by the government.
In December 2019, Mélenchon received a suspended prison sentence of three months for rebellion and provocation following an altercation with police officers who had come to serve a warrant at the La France Insoumise headquarters in Paris.
Third presidential candidacy and NUPES (2022–2023)
Mélenchon was again a candidate in the 2022 French presidential election. He was one of three candidates placed without their consent on the ballot for the 2022 French People's Primary, a non-official vote for a common left-wing candidate; he came third out of seven, behind Christiane Taubira and Yannick Jadot. Taubira withdrew in March, and endorsed Mélenchon. Mélenchon's polling numbers surged in the final weeks of campaigning, putting him within chance of making the second round. In 2017, 21.4% had been enough to gain access to the second round.
For the first round of the 2022 presidential election, Mélenchon's strategy was to unite the other left-wing anti-neoliberal parties against Emmanuel Macron, who attempted to play down his neoliberalism in the second round in order to appeal to Mélenchon voters while presenting Marine Le Pen as a dangerous nationalist. This dynamic flipped in the 2022 French legislative election as Mélenchon and La France Insoumise had become part of the New Ecological and Social People's Union (NUPES), a broad anti-neoliberal coalition. In turn, Macron denounced Mélenchon and the anti-neoliberal NUPES coalition as delusional anti-capitalists. Mélenchon urged his supporters "not to give a single vote to Mrs Le Pen". According to political scientist Christopher Bickerton, observers commented that "the LFI's electoral offer was the most sophisticated of all the parties — a total of 694 proposals, from a sixth republic to 'rational' anti-terrorist legislation, to a commitment to the demilitarisation of space."
In the first round of voting in France's two round voting system, Mélenchon came in third place with 22% of the vote, behind Macron (28%) and Le Pen (23%). Only the top two finishers continue on to the second round, so Mélenchon was eliminated after the results of the first round were certified. Mélenchon advised his voters not to vote for Le Pen in the second round but did not endorse Macron. His 7.7 million first-round voters became a key demographic for the second round. He was the most popular candidate for voters aged 24–35, and in the overseas departments of Martinique, Guadeloupe, French Guiana, Réunion, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, and Saint Martin, obtaining majorities in several of these jurisdictions. He also finished first in Île-de-France. Mélenchon did not run for re-election in Bouches-du-Rhône's 4th constituency, instead giving his candidacy to Manuel Bompard. Mélenchon led the NUPES coalition since May 2022. In the 2022 legislative election, NUPES won 131 seats. Amid divisions, NUPES dissolved in 2023.
Political positions
Mélenchon is a socialist republican and historical materialist, inspired primarily by Jean Jaurès (the founder of French republican socialism). He is a proponent of increased labour rights and the expansion of French welfare programmes. Mélenchon has also called for the mass redistribution of wealth to rectify existing socioeconomic inequalities. Domestic policies proposed by Mélenchon include a 100% income tax on earnings over €360,000 a year, full state reimbursement for health care costs, a reduction in presidential powers in favour of the legislature, and the easing of immigration laws. Mélenchon supports same-sex marriage.
Mélenchon believes in the "créolisation" of French culture and society, a term coined by poet Martinican Édouard Glissant, who defines it as "a blend of cultures that creates something new", that "belongs to none of the cultures that comprise it". During a campaign rally in December 2021, Mélenchon told his supporters: "Whatever one's gender, colour or religion, we are called upon to love one another, and so we pool together our tastes and our cultures. That's créolisation. Créolisation is the future of humanity."
Mélenchon is an outspoken critic of the European Union (EU), which he views as having been corrupted through neoliberalism. During his 2012 campaign, Mélenchon positioned himself against the trend towards economic globalisation, which he denounced as disproportionately profiting the financial industry and "high income earners" at the expense of the poor. He insisted international organisations such as the EU threatened to "strangle the voice of the people". He supports a renegotiation of European treaties.
Mélenchon opposes the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), which he perceives as an affront to France's national sovereignty. He has repeatedly called for France to withdraw from NATO.
Mélenchon has been labelled a "populist" by numerous diverse people, with the PS senator Luc Carvounas saying he goes to "the summits of demagoguery and populism", and the magazine Slate, stating that Mélenchon's rhetoric is "shocking" and implying his entire political life is based around pleasing the people. He has been compared to Marine Le Pen in terms of debating style; political scientist Dominique Reynié even went as far as to say he "flirts with xenophobia when it helps him".
Mélenchon has himself his vision of populism, which he sees as positive if it comes with a left ideology. He is inspired by the philosopher Chantal Mouffe, who sought to theorise and rehabilitate the term "left populism". This theory argues that neoliberalism and austerity only made the far-right stronger and that the word "people" has to be reintroduced into the political sphere in a civic sense rather than an ethnic way (creating a "right populism" to fight).
Mélenchon has voiced his support for Rattachism. Observers have assessed his political positions as left-wing and far-left. According to sociologist Paolo Gerbaudo, Mélenchon had softened his "revolutionary and radical image" and de facto turned towards reformism. During the 2022 presidential campaign, Mélenchon had shifted towards a more pragmatic approach, and campaigning in favor of bread-and-butter issues.
Sixth Republic and French Constitution
Mélenchon advocates for the holding of a constitutional convention to create a Sixth Republic. In the 2017 party manifesto titled L'Avenir En Commun, it states in the first chapter: "The new constitution that France needs must be radically different". On 14 September 2014, Mélenchon wrote in Le Monde that "France must protect itself from the powers of finance. They devour the real economy. ... To this end, the definition of the constitutional rights of private ownership of capital should change. ... Again, it is inclusion in the Constitution that will fix this and make it a common rule."
Mélenchon is endorsed by the Movement for the 6th Republic, and has spoken positively of them before. A spokesman for La France Insoumise affirmed that Mélenchon was very welcoming of a Sixth Republic run by the people that welcomes democracy, ecology, and challenges social issues. The constitutional convention members must not have ever been elected representatives, and they would not be able to present themselves thereafter.
Agriculture and animal treatment
The association L214, which is a non-profit for animal protection, stated that he was the only candidate "for animals" during its evaluation of the candidates' programmes, giving him a score of 15.7/20, placing him at the head of 11 candidates.
European Parliament
Mélenchon's attendance before the 2012 presidential election was at 63%, and after this, his average is often compiled with pre-2012, so it is compiled at 71.40%. Mélenchon justified his relatively low attendance with how active he is within France itself, and has posted a list of other reasons on his blog. He increased his attendance after that, with the website votewatch.eu reporting it in 2017 at 85.1%.
Foreign policy
Germany
Mélenchon is critical of German policies. After writing a pamphlet against German policies in May 2015, Mélenchon declared: "But I'm not being anti-German. My aim is to rid my readers of any fascination with the so-called 'German model'. What a 'model', indeed! It is a mockery, a fake paradise, whose population suffers from increasing impoverishment and social violence."
After the German Chancellor Angela Merkel, in December 2014, described reform efforts so far in France and Italy as "insufficient", Mélenchon replied through Twitter in German and French: "Maul zu, Frau #Merkel ! Frankreich ist frei. Occupez-vous de vos pauvres et de vos équipements en ruines !" ("Shut your mouth, Mrs. Merkel! France is free. Take care of your poor and your ruined equipment.")
In reaction to the referendum on the Greek sovereign debt crisis in early July 2015, he said that the "right-wing German government" was primarily responsible for the aggravation of the crisis.
Ukraine
Mélenchon supported the 2014 Russian annexation of Crimea, stating that "...Crimean ports [were] vital for Russia's security", and that Russia was taking "...protective measures against an adventurous putschist power", also alleging that Ukraine was influenced by neo-Nazis. He further opposed imposing sanctions on Russia, and as a member of the European Parliament, voted against all forms of cooperation with Ukraine, including on science. In 2015, Melenchon referred to Ukraine as a country "...struggling to be one". During the 2021-2022 Russo-Ukrainian crisis, he said that Russia "...must not cross Ukraine's borders", while stating that the United States should not "...annex Ukraine into NATO". Melenchon criticized the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, although he blamed the cause of the conflict on what he termed as NATO "pushing ever closer to [Russia's] borders", and opposed delivering arms to Ukraine.
Russia
Some magazine editors claimed Mélenchon "supported Russia" and was sympathetic towards Vladimir Putin. Notably, the journalist Nicolas Hénin said that Mélenchon is "on the left of the political spectrum, but is an advocate for the Kremlin leader". Cécile Vaissié, author of The Kremlin Networks, considers Jean-Luc Mélenchon as "one of those that approve of Putin", and Yannick Jadot of EELV said that the "pro-Russia" stance is "contrary to any environment thinking".
Mélenchon mocked accusations of support for Putin, saying that it is unlikely that an "eco-socialist" would support Putin, and when attacked by Benoît Hamon on the topic of Putin, he stated: "I am not bound in any way to Mr. Putin. I am absolutely fighting his policy, and if I were Russian, I would not vote for his party, but for the Russian Left Front whose leader is in prison." However, Mélenchon believes Putin was legitimately elected and thus deserves appropriate respect for his position. Mélenchon declared opposition to Putin's domestic policy and notes his friend of the Russian Left Front, Sergey Udaltsov, is imprisoned in Russia.
In February 2022, Mélenchon condemned Putin's invasion of Ukraine.
Syria
Mélenchon is in favour of a United Nations-led intervention in Syria featuring all nations on the Security Council. He opposes intervention without international cooperation. After the chemical attack in Ghouta, he said that he feels like a strike on Syria "would be a mistake", and calls for a "political solution".
He has compared an intervention in Syria to Iraq, and has approved of Russia's intervention in Syria, saying that he believes Vladimir Putin will resolve the ISIS problem in Syria, noting "It was the Russians who cut off the lines of supply that Daesh used to smuggle oil to Turkey". He said many times that he believed Putin could not be left to solve the problem in Syria alone, saying: "The UN will solve the problem [...] it's time for an international coalition".
Saudi Arabia
During a Europarliament session on 8 June 2016 concerning Venezuela, Mélenchon criticized what he called European hypocrisy, comparing European tolerance of Saudi Arabian rule and intolerance of Venezuelan rule.
Venezuela
In 2018, he described the countries that denounced the 2018 presidential election were "puppets of the United States". He said that the date of the election was agreed upon with the approval of former Spanish Prime Minister José Rodríguez Zapatero and that some of the opposition had decided to boycott it.
Iran
Following the 2020 Baghdad International Airport airstrike, Mélenchon tweeted: "We must equally condemn the USA and Iran as warmongers. My condemnation of the USA does not exempt Iran from the fact that it is a theocracy that wants to destroy the State of Israel." On French news channel LCI, he declared: "the current government of Iran claims it wants to destroy the State of Israel. This is an intolerable project which in itself creates incredible tension in the region, and obviously favors extremes on either side."
Defence
Mélenchon wants France to withdraw from NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization), and advocates for what he calls a "separate France" which is pacifist. He opposes the concept of a unified European army.
Regionalism
Mélenchon has no real position on regionalism, but has stated that he supports the teaching of regional languages, especially Breton. He supports state funding for the teaching of the Breton language. He has gone against autonomy for Brittany, even criticising socialists from the region for promoting "autonomy".
In 2018, Mélenchon was asked a question about an anti-corruption investigation by a journalist from Toulouse. He responded by mocking her accent, accusing her of "talking nonsense" and then asking "has anyone got a question in more or less comprehensible French?". Video of the exchange was circulated widely on social media and sparked a debate about whether discrimination based on regional accents should be made illegal. Mélenchon apologised for his comment, claiming he thought the journalist was mocking him.
Political career offices
- Minister of Vocational Education, 2000–2002
- National Assembly
- Member for Bouches-du-Rhône's 4th constituency, 2017–2022
- European Parliament
- Member of the European Parliament, 2009–2017
- Senate
- Senator of Essonne, 1986–2000 (became minister in 2000), 2004–2010 (resignation, elected in European Parliament in 2009). Elected in 1986, re-elected in 1995 and 2004. At the age of 35, he was the youngest member of the Senate when he was initially elected to it.
- General Council
- Vice-president of the General Council of Essonne, 1998–2001
- General councillor of Essonne, 1985–1992, 1998–2004. Re-elected in 1998.
- Municipal Council
- Deputy-mayor of Massy, Essonne, 1983–1995
- Municipal councillor of Massy, Essonne, 1983–2001. Re-elected in 1989 and 1995.
- Co-president of the Left Party, 2008–2014
Distinctions
- Grand Officer of the Order of May (Argentina, 1988)
- Named "Politician of the Year" 2012 by GQ France
- Honorary Professor at the Universidad Nacional de Lanús (Argentina) in 2019
See also
In Spanish: Jean-Luc Mélenchon para niños
