Élisabeth Guigou

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Élisabeth Guigou in 1997

Élisabeth Guigou (born Élisabeth Vallier, 6 August 1946, Marrakesh, Morocco) is a French Socialist politician.

She is the spouse of Jean-Louis Guigou, a former technical adviser of Michel Rocard who has an agrégation in economics and has taught at university and who occupied different public posts. They have two children.

[edit] Biography

She entered politics in the 60s, first in the Convention des institutions républicaines then in the PSU and eventually in the PS. Élisabeth Guigou attended the ENA school of administration. She first collaborated with Jacques Delors in 1982 before joining François Mitterrand's cabinet, encouraged by Hubert Védrine. She was appointed general secretary of the interminsterial comity regarding european economical matters in 1986 during the period of cohabitation.

She has been successively put in charge of European economic matters, then more specifically those of central and eastern Europe. She was later chosen to be Minister of Eureopean Affairs (1990-1993) before sitting on the European Parliament.

She then went to live in Vaucluse in June 1997 and became the deputy for this département. She became Minister of Justice in Lionel Jospin's cabinets from 1997 to 2000, and Minister of Employment from 2000 to 2002. After her defeat in the election to be mayor of Avignon, she was elected in 2002 as deputy of the 9th District of the Seine-Saint-Denis département in the National Assembly.

She is a close aquaintance of the priest Jean-François Six. She is a founding chairwoman and co-president with Jean-Noël Jeanneney of the Europartenaires association. She has also created a lobby group called Femmes d'Europe (Women of Europe) and sits on the board of direscors of Jacques Delors's fondation Notre Europe (our Europe). She successfully stood up for a "yes" to the referendum on the European Constitution within her socialist federation in 2004 but without success to her voters a year later.

She became well-known in France during the campaign of the Maastricht Treaty referendum.