Jacques Chirac

President of the Republic · 1995-2007 · born on 29 November 1932, died on 26 September 2019

Elected president of the Republic in 1995, Jacques Chirac was the first right-wing president from neo-Gaullism (RPR). His seven-year term, then his five-year term, were marked by his refusal of the Iraq War in 2003, which earned him great popularity.

In favour of Europe, he saw the euro adopted in 2002 but failed in the 2005 referendum on the European Constitution. He reduced the presidential term to five years, reformed by referendum in 2000, and supported the creation of the French food safety agency.

Accused in 2011 in the fake jobs affair of the city of Paris, he was sentenced to two years’ imprisonment suspended. He died in 2019. A symbol of the end of a political generation, he remains popular with public opinion.

In the tree of power

Further reading