7 Things To Know About France's New, Openly Gay PM

Jan 10, 2024, 10:32 IST

Moohita Kaur Garg

Emmanuel Macron appointed 34-year-old Gabriel Attal as his new prime minister on Tuesday. Here are five things you should know about Attal.

Youngest PM

At 34, Gabriel Attal is France's youngest post-war prime minister. Previously, the record was held by the leftist Laurent Fabius, who was 37 when he was named PM by Francois Mitterrand in 1984.

France's First Openly Gay PM

Gabriel Attal is France's first openly gay prime minister.

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A Young Start

He joined the Socialist Party when he was 17 and became a household name in French politics after being named government spokesman during the pandemic.

A Smooth Communicator

Gabriel Attal was made education minister in 2023. He has made a name for himself as one of Macron's savviest cabinet ministers and a smooth communicator.

Popular Among Conservative Voters

Upon his appointment as education minister last year, Attal banned the Muslim abaya dress in state schools. This made him popular among many conservative voters despite hailing from the left.

Bullied in Middle School

As per Reuters, Attal recently went on a famous TV show to tell the story of how he was bullied in middle school by a former classmate. He said that the classmate shamed him on a blog created to rate classmates' physiques during the early days of the Internet revolution.

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