André Le Troquer

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André Le Troquer, (October 27, 1884 - November 11, 1963) was a French politician, socialist lawyer, and president of the National Assembly from January 12, 1954 to January 10, 1955, and a second time from January 24 1956 to October 4, 1958.

Elected deputy of Paris in 1936, he sat on the National Assembly from 1945 to 1958. André Le Troquer spoke out against the demands of the armistice of June 1940. In 1942, with Félix Gouin, he defended Léon Blum during the Process of Riom. He sat on the consultative assembly of Algiers before being named commissioner of War. He was at the side of Charles de Gaulle at the liberation of Paris.

In 1945, Le Troquer became minister of the interior from January 23, 1946 to June 2, 1945 in the Félix Gouin government and minister of national defense in Léon Blum's government from December 13, 1946 to January 13, 1947. Vice President of the National Assembly, he was the interim president of the Congress of Versailles at the time of the election of René Coty to the presidency of the Republic in December 1953.

In his capacity as president of the National Assembly, he played an important role throughout the events of May-June 1958 that marked the return of General de Gaulle to power. He went with Gaston Monnerville, president of the Council of the Republic, to Saint-Cloud for a decisive conference with de Gaulle and assured that his return would be carried out in conformance to constitutional practices. He read René Coty's message announcing that he had "appealed to the most renowned of the French" and presided over the sittings from the first to the third of June 1958 (inauguration of de Gaulle and powers to refine the new constitution). Defeated in the legislative elections of November 1958, he left politics in 1960 but not without having called for a "no" vote on the referendum of January 8, 1961 about Algeria.

He was sentenced to probation and a modest fine due in a sex affaire, called the "ballets roses".

André Le Troquer was president of the Municipal Council of Paris. He was decorated with the Croix de guerre for his participation in WWI where he was injured, resulting in the amputation of his right arm.