Balladur, Edouard

Balladur, Edouard
▪ 1994

      Socialist Pres. François Mitterrand named Édouard Balladur of the Gaullist Rally for the Republic (RPR) prime minister of France on March 29, 1993. Balladur headed the "cohabitation" government after the conservative parties' victory over the Socialists in the National Assembly elections of March 21 forced Mitterrand to choose a right-wing head of government. The former finance minister took office at a time when the economy of France was in recession and unemployment was quite high. Many of the measures taken by Balladur in his attempts to improve the economic picture (including a tax increase) might have made him immediately unpopular with the French populace but, amazingly, they did not. Even the devaluation of the franc in the wake of the failure of the European Monetary System and the resulting strained relations with Germany did not cause him the political embarrassment that might have been expected. Other plans that went awry included legislation intended to curb the number of illegal aliens by performing identity checks on anyone who appeared not to be a citizen and a proposal to make the central bank of France autonomous. Still, the French strongly approved of Balladur's handling of several crises, including a 16-day strike by the Air France ground staff, as well as his success in obtaining beneficial compromises at the world trade negotiations. Niggling details like rising unemployment did not seem to imperil the popularity of the aloof and aristocratic prime minister.

      Balladur was born May 2, 1929, in Izmir, Turkey, into a wealthy banking family, and he grew up in Marseille after the family relocated to France in 1935. He received diplomas in law and political science, in addition to the degree conferred upon him by the prestigious École Nationale d'Administration. In 1957 Balladur began his career in public service when he joined the diplomatic service as an official in the Council of State. During the years 1964-68, he was an adviser to Prime Minister Georges Pompidou. He then went on to serve first as deputy secretary-general to the president (1969) and then as secretary-general (1974) during Pompidou's presidency. In 1977 Balladur left public service to become chairman of Générale de Service Informatique; he held the post until 1986. From 1980 to 1986 he was also president of Compagnie Européenne d'Accumulateurs. He left the private sector in 1986 to enter the National Assembly and become minister of economy, finance, and privatization in the cohabitation government of Prime Minister Jacques Chirac, a fellow member of the Gaullist RPR. (CHRISTINE SULLIVAN)

* * *

▪ prime minister of France
born May 2, 1929, İzmir [Smyrna], Turkey

      French neo-Gaullist politician, prime minister of France from 1993 to 1995.

      Balladur graduated from the prestigious National School of Administration in 1957 and went to work for the Council of State as a junior official. In 1962 he joined the Office of Radio and Television Broadcasting (ORTF). The head of ORTF recommended him to Prime Minister (later President) Georges Pompidou (Pompidou, Georges), and during the 1960s and '70s Balladur was a member of Pompidou's staff. After Pompidou's death in 1974, Balladur worked in industry, becoming chairman of two subsidiaries of the national electric company.

      From 1984 to 1988 Balladur served as councillor of state, and he was an adviser to Jacques Chirac (Chirac, Jacques), the leader of the neo-Gaullist party Rally for the Republic (RPR). In 1986 Balladur was elected to the National Assembly as deputy for Paris, but he gave up his seat to join newly appointed Prime Minister Chirac's cabinet as minister of economy, finance, and privatization. A political moderate, Balladur had helped develop the formula for “cohabitation,” the sharing of power between Socialist President François Mitterrand and Chirac's conservative government. As finance minister he launched an ambitious privatization program; oversaw the easing of controls on prices, capital, and labour; and supported the introduction of a single European currency.

      Chirac's government left office in 1988, and Balladur was reelected to the National Assembly. In March 1993, after conservatives won an overwhelming majority in the National Assembly, President Mitterrand appointed Balladur prime minister. Balladur was popular with the people, and in 1995 he announced his bid for the presidency. Many voters, however, were upset that he was running against Chirac, his former mentor, and Balladur placed third after the first round of voting. He subsequently gave his support to Chirac, who later won.

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Balladur, Edouard — (1929 )    political figure    Born in Smyrna (Izmir), Turkey, Edouard Balladur served as an envoy (1964), then as a technical adviser to georges Pompidou (1966 68) and, after the latter s election as head of state, became adjunct secretary… …   France. A reference guide from Renaissance to the Present

  • Balladur, Édouard — ► (n. 1929) Político francés. Perteneciente al partido gaullista Agrupación para la República, fue secretario general de la Presidencia de la República en 1974. Tras ser ministro de Economía, Finanzas y Privatización (1986 88), en 1993 se… …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Balladur, Édouard —  (1929–) Prime minister of France (1993–1995) …   Bryson’s dictionary for writers and editors

  • Balladur — Balladur, Édouard …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Edouard Balladur — Édouard Balladur (1987) Édouard Balladur (* 2. Mai 1929 in Izmir, Türkei) ist ein französischer gaullistischer Politiker (RPR, UMP). Er war von 29. März 1993 bis 16. Mai 1995 Pr …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Édouard Balladur — Primer ministro de Francia 29 de marzo de 1993 – 11 de mayo de 1995 …   Wikipedia Español

  • Edouard — Édouard ist ein französischer männlicher Vorname. Im deutschen Sprachraum erscheint er als Eduard. Bekannte Namensträger sind: Jean Édouard Adam Jacques Édouard Alexis Édouard André Édouard François André Édouard d’Anglemont Jules Léopold Édouard …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Édouard — oder Edouard ist ein männlicher Vorname. Inhaltsverzeichnis 1 Herkunft und Bedeutung 2 Bekannte Namensträger 2.1 Vorname 2.2 Zwischenname …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Balladur — (Édouard) (né en 1929) homme politique français (R.P.R.). Ministre de l économie (1986 1988), Premier ministre (1993 1995), vaincu au 1er tour de l élection présidentielle de 1995 …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Édouard Balladur — « Balladur » redirige ici. Pour les autres significations, voir Balladur (homonymie). Édouard Balladur …   Wikipédia en Français

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”