Jospin

Lionel Jospin (born 12 July 1937 in Meudon, Hauts-de-Seine) is a French politician and a member of the Socialist Party who served as Prime Minister of France from 4 June 1997 to 6 May 2002 under President Jacques Chirac. He studied at Sciences Po in Paris and the École nationale d'administration (ENA), and began a career in the French civil service before entering electoral politics.

During the 1980s and 1990s, Jospin held several governmental posts and became a leading figure within the Socialist Party. After the 1997 legislative elections, he formed a broad left-wing government known as the Gauche plurielle, bringing together several leftist groups to govern with a diverse coalition.

As prime minister, Jospin pursued a program of social and educational reform and sought to modernize public services within a European economic framework. His government is best remembered for introducing the 35-hour workweek policy, aimed at reducing the standard legal working week, along with other measures intended to reduce unemployment and expand social protection.

Jospin stood for the French presidency twice. In 1995 he advanced to the runoff against Jacques Chirac but was defeated. In 2002 he again ran for president, finishing third in the first round and failing to reach the runoff, a result that contributed to the subsequent reshuffling of the government and the left’s position in national politics.

Throughout his career, Jospin was a central figure in the French left and a representative of attempts to combine reformist policies with social protections within the framework of the Fifth Republic.