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Pier MoruaFrench socialist politician, Prime Minister of France from May 22, 1981 to July 17, 1984.
Date of Birth: 05.07.1928
Country:  France |
Content:
Biography of Pierre Mauroy
Pierre Mauroy (born July 5, 1928) was a French socialist politician and the Prime Minister of France from May 22, 1981, to July 17, 1984.
Early Life and Career
Mauroy was born in Cartignies, in the Nord department of France. He worked as a teacher and led the youth movement of the Socialist Party as well as the union of technical teachers. He became the head of the Socialist Party's branch in his home department of Nord, one of the largest branches in the party, and quickly rose through the ranks. In 1966, he became the party's second-in-command after the general secretary, Guy Mollet. In 1971, he supported François Mitterrand and became his deputy in the reorganized Socialist Party.
Political Career
In 1973, Mauroy was elected mayor of Lille, the main city in his department, and also became a deputy. However, he found himself in opposition to Mitterrand, who expelled former members of the SFIO party from the party in favor of members of his inner circle. Mauroy aligned himself with Michel Rocard, an internal opponent of Mitterrand and a candidate in the 1969 elections, in 1979. Despite this, Mitterrand did not expel either Rocard or Mauroy from the party and even made Mauroy his trusted representative before the 1981 elections.
Prime Minister and Later Career
After winning the presidential elections in 1981, François Mitterrand appointed Mauroy as Prime Minister and dissolved the parliament to obtain a majority in the legislative bodies. Mauroy's cabinet included communist ministers for the first time since 1946. The subsequent elections gave a homogeneous presidential majority in parliament. Mauroy's cabinet passed important social laws, such as reducing the working week to 39 hours and introducing a retirement age of 60. However, Mauroy tried to resist Mitterrand's socialist political program adopted in 1983. He resigned the following year.
From 1988 to 1992 (after Mitterrand's re-election for a second term when Rocard became Prime Minister), Mauroy served as the first secretary of the Socialist Party and sought to reconcile the party, torn by internal struggles between "Rocardians" and Mitterrand's immediate circle (like Lionel Jospin). From 1992 to 1999, he was the chairman of the Socialist International and was elected to the French Senate. In 2001, he stepped down as mayor of Lille. He is considered a moral authority among French leftists. During the 2007 elections, he supported Ségolène Royal.
Mauroy was the oldest former Prime Minister of France at the time of Pierre Messmer's death.
