Gérald Darmanin

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Gérald Darmanin
Darmanin in 2019
Minister of the Interior and Overseas
Assumed office
6 July 2020
Prime MinisterJean Castex
Élisabeth Borne
Gabriel Attal
Preceded byChristophe Castaner
Minister of Public Action and Accounts
In office
17 May 2017 – 6 July 2020
Prime MinisterÉdouard Philippe
Preceded byChristian Eckert (Secretary of State for the Budget and Public Accounts)
Succeeded byOlivier Dussopt
Mayor of Tourcoing
In office
23 May 2020 – 3 September 2020
Preceded byJean-Marie Vuylsteker
Succeeded byDoriane Bécue
In office
4 April 2014 – 9 September 2017
Preceded byMichel-François Delannoy
Succeeded byDidier Droart
Member of the National Assembly
for Nord's 10th constituency
In office
20 June 2012 – 27 January 2016
Preceded byChristian Vanneste
Succeeded byVincent Ledoux
Personal details
Born
Gérald Moussa Darmanin

(1982-10-11) 11 October 1982 (age 41)
Valenciennes, Nord, France
Political partyRenaissance (since 2017)
Other political
affiliations		Union for a Popular Movement (2012–2015)
The Republicans (2015–2017)
Alma materSciences Po Lille
ProfessionJurist

Gérald Moussa Darmanin (French pronunciation: [ʒeʁald musa daʁmanɛ̃]; born 11 October 1982) is a French politician who has been serving as Minister of the Interior in the governments of Prime Ministers Jean Castex, Élisabeth Borne and Gabriel Attal since 2020.

A former member of

La République En Marche! (REM) since 2017. Darmanin was Mayor of Tourcoing from 2014 to 2017 and Minister of Public Action and Accounts in the first and second governments of Prime Minister Édouard Philippe from 2017 until 2020.[1][2]

Early life and education

Darmanin was born to a working-class family with Algerian and Maltese roots.

Second World War[6] and a Harki during the Algerian War.[7]

Darmanin struggled academically while attending a public school in Valenciennes, so his parents decided to pay for private education in Paris. When they ran out of money for tuition, the school allowed Darmanin to finish his studies for free; in exchange, he had to spend years working as a hall monitor. After working odd jobs that included singing in the metro and waiting tables, he enrolled at Sciences Po Lille.,[8] following a year at Institut Catholique de Paris ICP[9] in its preparatory school ("prépa" or "classe préparatoire") for entrance to Institutes of Political Studies IEP (known as Sciences Po) including the courses of a first year of DEUG in History (the daughter of Fouad II the last King of Egypt Princess Fawzia-Latifa of Egypt and Michel Fayad were then his classmates).

Political career

Gérald Darmanin, Member of Parliament for the 10th district of the North (2013)

Early beginnings

Early on, Darminin worked as a parliamentary assistant for conservative MP Isabelle Vasseur before joining former minister and then Member of the European Parliament Jacques Toubon.[3] He was taken under the wing of Toubon, who introduced him to UMP leaders such as Xavier Bertrand and helped him become chief of staff to Sarkozy's Minister of Sports, David Douillet.[8]

In the 2012 legislative election, Darmanin was elected to the National Assembly in the tenth constituency of Nord; at the time, he was one of the country's youngest lawmakers.[3] He ran two years later for election as Mayor of Tourcoing and won, establishing himself on the national political scene.[4] Former President Nicolas Sarkozy brought Darmanin on board as director of his primary election campaign in 2016.[4]

In response to the Fillon affair, Darmanin renounced his support for LR candidate François Fillon in the 2017 presidential election and resigned from his position as the party's deputy general secretary.[10]

Minister of Public Action and Accounts, 2017–2020

Darmanin in June 2017

In May 2017, Darmanin was appointed by President

Minister of the Economy and Finance, although himself a cabinet member.[11] At the time of his appointment, he was one of the youngest members in Édouard Philippe's government.[12]

Soon after taking office, Darmanin announced plans to achieve 4.5 billion euros ($5.13 billion) in savings on the French government's operational budget in 2017.[13] That year, he managed to bring the country's budget deficit below the EU-mandated limit of 3 percent of GDP, the first time in a decade for France.[12] He also helped implement Macron's main tax reforms and oversaw an overhaul of tax collection.[14]

In 2018 Darmanin was accused of sexual coercion and harassment by two women relating to alleged misconduct in 2009 and between 2014 and 2017, with one of the women alleging that while Mayor of Tourcoing he asked for sexual favours in exchange for providing her with social housing. However prosecutors dropped the case, claiming an inability to determine an "absence of consent", as Darmanin denied both allegations.[15] In June 2020, the Court of Appeal of Paris ordered the reopening of the investigation.[16]

In 2019, Darmanin oversaw an widely discussed agreement between Google and French tax authorities, marking the end of a four-year investigation that looked at whether the company routed profits from its French activities to Ireland, which was a lower-tax jurisdiction at the time. Google eventually agreed to pay almost 1 billion euros to settle all of its litigation with the tax authorities.[17]

In the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic in France, Darmanin oversaw the government's efforts to mobilise 150 billion euros to support industries the hardest hit by the crisis as part of a response that pushed debt to record levels.[18][19]

In the 2020 municipal election, Darmanin was reelected as Mayor of Tourcoing but resigned soon thereafter.[20]

The youngest Minister of the Interior of the Fifth Republic, 2020–2022

In 2020, Darmanin was appointed Minister of the Interior in the government of Prime Minister Jean Castex, succeeding Christophe Castaner.

At the age of thirty-seven, Darmanin became the youngest Minister of the Interior of the Fifth Republic.[21]

Following the murder of Samuel Paty by an Islamic terrorist in October 2020, Darmanin announced a large police sweep against several individuals. He also ordered the closing of the Pantin mosque in the Parisian suburb Seine-Saint-Denis after it re-broadcast a video containing false allegations about Paty.[22][23] Darmanin subsequently ordered the dissolution of other associations with ties to radical Islam[24] and deemed "separatist".[10]

In response to the 2020 Nice stabbing committed by a Tunisian migrant, Darmanin negotiated deportation procedures with Tunisia.[25]

In February 2020, Darmanin sponsored a bill that French lawmakers said they hoped would uproot radical Islam in France.[26] Darmanin said the aim of the bill is to stop "an Islamist hostile takeover targeting Muslims".[26] In March 2021, Darmanin went to court to prevent the building of a new mosque in Strasbourg, arguing dark money was involved in the project.[27] In 2022, Darmanin closed the Islamic website La Voie Droite using the 2021 legislation.[28] Also based on that legislation, he filed a successive objection against the city of Grenoble's decision to allow the use of body-covering "burkini" bathing suits for women in municipal pools in May 2022.[29]

In early 2021, Darmanin also oversaw a ban of the Generation Identity group, the youth wing of Bloc Identitaire, arguing that the organisation promoted "an ideology inciting hatred, violence and discrimination on the basis of one's origin, race or religion".[30]

In May 2021, Darmanin asked the Paris police to block a planned pro-Palestinian rally amid the Israel–Palestine crisis; he urged police chiefs across France to remain vigilant, noting that "serious disturbances to public order were seen in 2014."[31]

In the government of Élisabeth Borne (from 2022)

Following Jean Castex's resignation in May 2022, Macron appointed Élisabeth Borne, Minister of Labour and Darmanin's former colleague, as Prime Minister from 20 May 2022. Darmanin's position in the new government remained unchanged, with his responsibilities as Minister of the Interior.[32]

Shortly after the new government was sworn in, the

2022 UEFA Champions League Final chaos many, including Borne, called for Darmanin's resignation.[34] However, French President Emmanuel Macron stood by his interior minister wholeheartedly, to the extent that he survived the crisis with his powers strengthened in an almost unprecedented way.[35]

By 2023, news media considered Darmanin one of Borne's main rivals inside the government and a potential candidate to succeed her.[36]

Political positions

In the past, Darmanin has openly spoken out and voted against same-sex marriage in France[37] and criticized the influence of gender studies in identity politics.[3] He reportedly meets with or reads the writings of influential voices from the far end of the political spectrum, such as essayists Alain Finkielkraut or Éric Zemmour.[3]

In 2020, Darmanin expressed his opposition against mail-in voting to facilitate voting during the public health crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in France.[38]

Controversies

Two women have filed formal complaints against Darmanin alleging he abused of his authority to coerce them into sexual favours.[39]

Accusation by Sophie Patterson-Spatz

A first accusation dates back to June 2017. Sophie Patterson-Spatz filed a criminal case against Darmanin accusing him of rape. The case was initially closed for procedural reasons.[40] The investigation was reopened in June 2020 and Darmanin was cross-examined by a judge in March 2021. The non-consensual sexual encounter that Darmanin stands accused of would have taken place in March 2009. Patterson-Spatz contacted Darmanin in 2009 asking for his support to revisit a condemnation against her for blackmail and phone harassment of her ex-partner.[41] Patterson-Spatz said that she felt obliged to "slip between the sheets" in exchange for Darmanin's support in her legal case.[42] Darmanin does not deny having had a sexual encounter with Patterson-Spatz but said that the encounter did not involve a quid pro quo.[42]

Accusation of abuse of weakness by a second complainant

In 2018, another woman filed a complaint against Darmanin for abuse of her weakness, an offence under French law designed to protect vulnerable citizens. The victim under the pseudonym Sarah shared a graphic description of her two alleged sexual encounters with Darmanin with the French online newspaper Mediapart.[43] Sarah is an inhabitant of Tourcoing where Darmanin served as mayor. In 2016, Sarah contacted Darmanin to ask him to help her obtain a social housing placement. She described that in a conversation Darmanin placed her hand on his genitalia in an unsolicited manner.[44]

The alleged victim said in respect to her sexual encounter with Darmanin that she "felt obliged to do it in order to get housing and a job." Letters sent by Darmanin to public authorities responsible for social housing attribution in France, in which Darmanin is asking for a placement for the alleged victim attest that Darmanin did intervene in her favour.[45] The investigation was closed in May 2018 on the grounds that the complainant failed to evidence her lack of consent in her sexual encounters with Darmanin.[46] External observers[who?] have pointed to unsettling similarities between the two sexual coercion cases.[47]

Protests by women rights activists

Following Darmanin's appointment as Minister of the Interior in July 2020, hundreds of women protested in central Paris, demanding his immediate resignation due to his involvement in a rape lawsuit.[48] The protesters claimed he was unfit for overseeing the police since he had admitted, in court proceedings, to have requested sexual favors from a woman in exchange for his support on her judicial case.[49][50]

In response to a spate of incidents that erupted throughout the summer of 2020, including an armed clash involving Chechen groups and violence during the Bastille Day celebrations, Darmanin told newspaper Le Figaro that "it is necessary to stop the wilding (ensauvagement) of a certain part of society". His use of vocabulary previously used mostly by far-right groups met with criticism, including from members of his own party. In Parliament, fellow LREM lawmaker Sacha Houlié told Darmanin that "there are no savages in France, there are only citizens".[51]

Gérald Darmanin, Minister of Public Action and Accounts (29 April 2019)

Comments on religious separatism

In October 2020, Darmanin faced criticism for an interview with

kosher food. He said he had "always been shocked to walk into a supermarket and see that there was an aisle of such [religious] community food", implying that the separate sale of these products can contribute to the isolation of minority communities.[52] In May 2021, when confronted at the National Assembly about the strict security policy his administration had put in place in reaction to an alleged increase in crime rates that was disproven by the National Institute of Statistic and Economic Studies, he said that while he liked to read reports and statistics, he would rather listen to the guts and feelings of his butcher in Tourcoing.[53]

Champions League Final controversy

Main article:
2022 UEFA Champions League Final chaos

On 28 May 2022, the

Champions League final at the Stade de France descended into chaos with locals entering the stadium without tickets and robbing and assaulting visiting Liverpool fans, while the police launched tear gas on innocent fans. Darmanin blamed the escalation on alleged ticket counterfeiting by Liverpool fans, an account that was disputed by eyewitnesses including journalists.[54] His statement was strongly condemned by Liverpool and the French left and right wing.[55] Polling found that 76% of the French public did not believe his statement.[56]

In June 2022, whilst giving evidence to a Senate committee, Darmanin said that things could have been better organised and apologised for the "disproportionate" use of tear gas. He maintained Liverpool fans were largely to blame.[57] In July 2022, the Senate committee released a report that condemned Darmanin, saying: "It is unfair to have sought to blame supporters of the Liverpool team for the disturbances, as the interior minister has done, to deflect attention from the state's inability to properly manage the crowd and suppress the action of several hundred violent and organised delinquents."[57]

Personal life

Darmanin married his second wife, Rose-Marie Devillers, a consultancy director at French communications group Havas,[58] on 29 August 2020. They were introduced to each other by Michel Bettan, executive vice-president of Havas Paris.[59]

They have one child, a baby boy born in 2021, Maximilien.[60] Darmanin is Catholic.[61]

Awards, honours

  • Médaille d'or de la jeunesse et des sports (2012)

Other activities

Publications

  • Chroniques de l'ancien monde : Quand la droite s’est perdue, éditions de l'Observatoire, 2017. Récit sur la déroute de la droite à l'élection présidentielle de 2017.[65]
  • Le Séparatisme islamiste. Manifeste pour la laïcité, éditions de l'Observatoire, 2021. Ouvrage où il explique les raisons et défend son projet de loi pour les valeurs républicaines.[66]

Bibliography

  • Ludovic Vigogne, Paris, Fayard, 3 avril 2019, 192 p. (
    OCLC 1100437068
    )
  • Anita Hausser et Jean-François Gintzburger, Paris, l'Archipel, 10 novembre 2021, 192 p. (
    OCLC 1290677587
    )
  • Laurent Valdiguié et François Vignolle, Paris, Robert Laffont, 31 mars 2022, 305 p. (
    OCLC 1337026435
    )

References

  1. ^ Anne Courtel (17 May 2017). "Gouvernement – Gérald Darmanin, progresse toujours et transgresse encore". lavoixdunord.fr (in French). La Voix du Nord. Retrieved 19 May 2017.
  2. ^ "Gérald Darmanin, un espoir de la droite à Bercy". Libération. Retrieved 17 May 2017.
  3. ^ a b c d e Elisa Braun (22 December 2020), Gérald Darmanin, Macron’s risky gamble Politico Europe.
  4. ^ a b c Nicholas Vinocur (2 August 2017), Gérald Darmanin, France’s new (and improved) Sarkozy Politico Europe.
  5. ^ "Ouakid Moussa, adjudant-chef, classe 1927 M, recrutement d'Alger, mie R. M. 2311; 28 ans de services, 5 campagnes, Journal officiel de la République française, 1958, p.4346".
  6. ^ Dossiers administratifs de résistantes et résistants, Musée de la résistance en ligne, Dossier GR 16 P 452368
  7. ^ "Pourquoi le président algérien a-t-il appelé Gérald Darmanin "Moussa" ?". Gentside (in French). 11 October 2021.
  8. ^ a b Nicholas Vinocur (2 August 2017), Gérald Darmanin, France’s new (and improved) Sarkozy Politico Europe
  9. ^ https://photo.capital.fr/de-valenciennes-au-gouvernement-qui-est-vraiment-gerard-darmanin-28039#le-bar-de-papa-482289
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  25. ^ Tarek Amara (6 November 2020), Tunisia will accept deportees from France if judicial rights are guaranteed Reuters.
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  28. ^ Layli Foroudi (26 January 2022), France targets groups, websites with expanded powers under anti-terror law Reuters.
  29. ^ Geert De Clercq (25 May 2022), French court scraps rule allowing burkinis in Grenoble swimming pools Reuters.
  30. ^ Jules Darmanin (3 March 2021), France bans far-right group Generation Identity Politico Europe.
  31. ^ "Pro-Palestinian rally in Paris banned amid rising Israel-Gaza tensions". France 24. 13 May 2021. Retrieved 6 July 2021.
  32. ^ Jura, www rfj ch, RFJ, Radio Fréquence (16 May 2022). "Macron nomme Elisabeth Borne Première ministre". www.rfj.ch (in Swiss French). Retrieved 3 September 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
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  36. ^ Paul de Villepin (25 August 2023), World’s richest man lobbied Macron to ditch prime minister Politico Europe.
  37. ^ Gérald Darmanin rattrapé par ses anciens tweets contre le mariage homosexuel Le Parisien, 18 May 2017.
  38. ^ Pierre-Paul Bermingham (16 November 2020), France split over ‘American’ mail-in ballots for 2021 regional elections Politico Europe.
  39. ^ Turchi, Marine; Rouget, Antton (26 February 2018). "Affaire Darmanin: la deuxième plaignante livre son récit" [Affaire Darmanin: the second complainant tells her story]. Mediapart (in French). Retrieved 20 June 2021.
  40. ^ Giltay, Frederik (13 March 2021). "Accusations de viol contre Gérald Darmanin : où en est l'enquête ?" [Rape accusations against Darmanin: where does the investigation stand?]. France 3 (in French). Retrieved 20 June 2021.
  41. ^ "Accusations de viol : Darmanin confronté pendant neuf heures à la plaignante" [Rape accusations : Darmanin facing the complainant for nine hours straight]. Europe 1 (in French). 13 March 2021. Retrieved 20 June 2021.
  42. ^ a b "Visé par une accusation de viol, Gérald Darmanin entendu sous le statut de témoin assisté" [Accused of rape, Darmanin will be heard by the court as cross-examination witness]. Le Monde (in French). 14 December 2020. Retrieved 20 June 2021.
  43. ^ "Affaire Darmanin: la seconde plaignante s'est "sentie obligée" d'avoir un rapport sexuel" [Affaire Darmanin: a second complainant “felt obliged” to have a sexual relation with Darmanin]. Le Figaro (in French). 25 February 2018. Retrieved 20 June 2021.
  44. ^ "Affaire Darmanin: la seconde plaignante s'est "sentie obligée" d'avoir un rapport sexuel" [Affaire Darmanin: a second complainant “felt obliged” to have a sexual relation with Darmanin]. Le Figaro (in French). 25 February 2018. Retrieved 20 June 2021.
  45. ^ Turchi, Marine; Rouget, Antton (26 February 2018). "Affaire Darmanin: la deuxième plaignante livre son récit" [Affaire Darmanin: the second complainant tells her story]. Mediapart (in French). Retrieved 20 June 2021.
  46. ^ "L'enquête pour " abus de faiblesse " visant Gérald Darmanin classée sans suite" [The investigation into "abuse of weakness" against Gérald Darmanin was closed]. Le Monde (in French). 16 May 2018. Retrieved 21 June 2021.
  47. ^ Turchi, Marine; Rouget, Antton (28 January 2021). "Affaire Darmanin: deux dossiers aux nombreuses similitudes" [Affaire Darmanin: two files with many similarities]. Mediapart (in French). Retrieved 20 June 2021.
  48. ^ Benoit Tessier (10 July 2020), Hundreds of French women protest against new interior minister Reuters.
  49. ^ "Plainte contre Darmanin : ses avocats ne nient pas les faits… mais n'y voient pas un viol". 30 January 2018. Retrieved 15 July 2020..
  50. ^ "Les avocats de Gérald Darmanin ne nient pas les faits qui lui sont reprochés, mais n'y voient pas un viol". Les Inrockuptibles (in French). 1 February 2018. Retrieved 26 July 2020.
  51. ^ Norimitsu Onishi and Constant Méheut (4 September 2020), A Coded Word From the Far Right Roils France’s Political Mainstream The New York Times.
  52. ^ Louise Guillot (21 October 2020), French minister’s complaint on religious food aisles sparks criticism Politico Europe.
  53. ^ "Délinquance: Darmanin préfère le "bon sens du boucher-charcutier de Tourcoing" aux études de l'Insee".
  54. ^ "Champions League final chaos: French interior minister Gerald Darmanin blames 'fraud at an industrial level' for crowd issues". Sky Sports. 30 May 2022. Retrieved 7 June 2022.
  55. ^ "Liverpool dismayed by 'disgraceful' claims from French Interior Minister". France 24. 2 June 2022. Retrieved 7 June 2022.
  56. ^ Bocquet, Marius (2 June 2022). "Fiasco du Stade de France : 76% des Français n'ont pas été convaincus par les explications de Darmanin". Le Figaro (in French). Retrieved 7 June 2022.
  57. ^ a b Paul Kirby (13 July 2022). "Uefa Liverpool final: String of errors in French handling, says report". BBC News. Retrieved 13 July 2022.
  58. ^ "Gérald Darmanin : Mariage surprise avec Rose-Marie pour le ministre". www.purepeople.com (in French). Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  59. ^ Closermag.fr (11 February 2021). "Gérald Darmanin : qui est sa femme, Rose-Marie Devillers ? - Closer". www.closermag.fr (in French). Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  60. ^ Média, Prisma. "Gérald Darmanin : qui est Rose-Marie Devillers, sa femme et mère de son fils ? - Gala". Gala.fr (in French). Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  61. ^ "Chanteur, Pêcheur, Amoureux... des chats et du vin : secrets de Gérald Darmanin". journaldesfemmes.fr (in French). 9 July 2020.
  62. ^ "Gérald Darmanin démissionne du conseil d'administration de Sciences-Po Lille". La Voix du Nord (in French). 17 December 2019. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  63. ^ "SEM VILLE RENOUVELEE". Fédération des EPL (in French). Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  64. ^ sur smirt-npdc.fr (consulté le 30 mai 2016 http://www.smirt-npdc.fr/elus-du-smirt/
  65. ^ "La droite en lambeaux". Le Monde.fr (in French). 27 December 2017. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  66. ^ "Gérald Darmanin publie un livre sur "le séparatisme islamiste"". BFMTV (in French). Retrieved 3 September 2022.
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