Jean Lassalle

Jean Lassalle (French: [ʒɑ̃ la.sal]; born 3 May 1955) is a French politician serving as an Independent member of the National Assembly since 2002. He was a candidate in the 2017 presidential election under the banner of Résistons! and received 435,301 votes (1.21%).

Jean Lassalle
Lassalle in 2017
Member of the National Assembly
for Pyrénées-Atlantiques's 4th constituency
Assumed office
16 June 2002
Preceded byMichel Inchauspé
Mayor of Lourdios-Ichère
In office
26 March 1977 – 16 July 2017
Personal details
Born (1955-05-03) 3 May 1955
Lourdios-Ichère, France
Political partyRésistons!
Other political
affiliations		Democratic Movement (2007–2016)
Union for French Democracy (until 2007)

Political career

Lassalle has served as mayor of the commune of Lourdios-Ichère since 21 March 1977, and has sat on the conseil général of the département of Pyrénées-Atlantiques since 22 March 1982, serving as vice-president since 1 January 1991. He was elected to the National Assembly in the 2002 legislative election, and represents the 4th constituency of Pyrénées-Atlantiques.[1] Since 2002 Lassalle has led the World Mountain People Association, an international network of mountain-dwellers active in more than 70 countries. He also leads a Haut-Béarn cultural association.

On 3 June 2003 Lassalle stood up in the National Assembly during questions to Minister of the Interior Nicolas Sarkozy and sang the Occitan anthem Se Canta in protest at an announcement by Sarkozy concerning the housing of 23 gendarmes tasked with guarding the Somport tunnel, which links France with Spain through the Pyrenees. The village closest to the French end of the tunnel is Urdos, but it was announced that the gendarmes would be housed in the nearby town of Oloron-Sainte-Marie, on the grounds that their wives would become bored in Urdos.

As he explained in an interview with France 3 later that day, Lassalle took exception to what he saw as a slur on the Pyrenean village and decided to interrupt the minister with his song. The protest was met by laughter from other deputies, disapproval from the president of the Assembly, and bemusement from Sarkozy.[2]

In 2013, Lassalle walked around France for eight months from April to December to meet people. He was afterwards quoted, “Everywhere I went I witnessed a crisis in the standard of living, a loss of identity and the loss of a sense of a common destiny”.[3] He found the situation equally bad in the cities and the countryside. Scepticism about globalisation, distrust of politicians and latent racism were common among people he spoke to, he said.[3]

Hunger strike

Lassalle undertook a 39-day hunger strike in March/April 2006, in protest at a threat to jobs in his constituency. Japanese firm Toyal, which owned a paint factory near Accous in the Vallée d'Aspe and employed 150 of Lassalle's constituents, announced plans to open a factory 60 km away. The firm claimed that this relocation of its investment would not result in the closure of the Accous site, but Lassalle's concerns were not assuaged and he embarked on a hunger strike on 7 March.

The strike ended on 14 April, when Toyal offered an assurance to Minister of the Interior Nicolas Sarkozy that the factory would not close, and that it would continue investment in the area before expanding elsewhere. Earlier the same day, Lassalle had been admitted to hospital in Garches, in the western suburbs of Paris, prompting intervention by President Jacques Chirac, Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin and Sarkozy. Lassalle had lost 21 kilograms (46 lb) of weight over the course of the strike.[4]

2017 presidential campaign

In 2017, Lassalle stood for President of France. His campaign spot included, among other things, mowing his lawn shirtless. He ultimately received 435,301 votes, 1.21% of the electorate, good enough for 7th place. Lassalle's support disproportionately came from rural and southwest constituencies.

Personal life

Lassalle was born in Lourdios-Ichère, Pyrénées-Atlantiques. His son Thibault Lassalle is a rugby union player. He was a member of the French U19 team taking part in the 2006 U19 World Championships in Dubai, in which France reached the semi-final.

On 20th September 2020, Lassalle accidentally parked his car on a level crossing that later obstructed a passenger train, which was reported on by multiple news outlets.[5][6] He was not fined for the incident, but jokingly commented that it would not have happened had he been driven by a personal driver.[7]

Works
  • Lassalle, Jean (2016). Un berger à l'Elysée. Paris: La Différence. ISBN 9782729122867. OCLC 961406166.

References
  1. "Jean Lassalle". Assemblée nationale. Retrieved 14 April 2006.
  2. "Singing MP baffles Paris parliament". BBC News. 3 June 2003.
  3. "MP finds France ‘without hope’ after walking tour of country". France24. 13 December 2013. Retrieved 19 December 2013.
  4. "French MP hunger strike wins deal". BBC News. 14 April 2006.
  5. "Jean Lassalle bloque le train Pau-Bedous : "J'ai vu cette magnifique place, sans réfléchir je m'y suis garé"". France Bleu (in French). 2020-09-20. Retrieved 2020-09-21.
  6. "Béarn : dans la lune, Jean Lassalle se gare sur le passage à niveau et bloque le train Oloron-Bedous". SudOuest.fr (in French). Retrieved 2020-09-21.
  7. "French MP left red-faced after parked car blocks train". BBC News. 2020-09-21. Retrieved 2020-09-21.
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