Annick Petrus
Member of the French Senate for Saint Martin
Assumed office
1 October 2020
Preceded byGuillaume Arnell
Member of the Territorial Council of Saint Martin
Assumed office
2 April 2017
Personal details
Born (1961-01-05) 5 January 1961 (age 63)
Pointe-à-Pitre, Guadeloupe
Political partyMAP (before 2012)
Union for Democracy (since 2012)
LR (since 2020)
RSM (since 2021)
Alma materUniversity of the French West Indies and Guiana

Annick Danièle Petrus (born 5 January 1961) is a French Saint Martinois educator and politician. She has served as the Senator for the Collectivity of Saint Martin since October 2020 as a member of the Union for Democracy and The Republicans (LR) parties. Petrus is the first woman to represent Saint Martin's lone seat in the French Senate.[1] Additionally, she has served in the Territorial Council of Saint Martin since 2017.

Biography

Petrus was born on 5 January 1961 in Guadeloupe to a Saint Martinois mother and a Guadeloupean father.[2][3] She is a native of Guadeloupe, but divided her time between that island and Saint Martin as a child.[3] She received a master's degree in educational sciences from the University of the French West Indies and Guiana.[3] Petrus has two children, a son and a daughter.[3]

In 1990, Petrus permanently moved to Saint Martin to work as a teacher.[3] She later became principal of Emile Larmonie primary school in Cul-de-Sac [fr], Saint Martin.[3] Petrus has served as a volunteer firefighter in the mid-2000s, after accompanying her son to his firefighting training in Guadeloupe.[3]

Petrus first ran for political office in the 2012 Saint Martin Territorial Council election, but her political group was largely defeated in the election.[3] Shortly after her loss, Petrus joined the Union for Democracy (UD) party, led by Daniel Gibbs.[3]

Annick Petrus was elected to the Territorial Council of Saint Martin on the Union for Democracy ticket in the 2017 general election.[4] She was appointed as the council's third vice president shortly after taking office.[3]

In the 2020 French Senate election, Petrus was nominated for the Senator of Saint Martin seat in the French Senator by the majority UD party.[3] Her opponents included incumbent Senator Guillaume Arnell of the RDSE group, who was seeking a second term.[4] The island's lone national senator is selected through an indirect election by the Grand Electors of Saint Martin, largely made up of members of the Territorial Council.[1][5] Petrus failed to secure a majority in the first round on 27 September 2020, receiving only 10 votes,[1][4] but won the second round with 68.2%.[1][5] Petrus won 15 votes in the second round, versus five votes for Marthe Ogoundele-Tessi, and two for outgoing Senator Guillaume Arnell.[5]

Petrus took office on 1 October 2020, becoming the first woman to represent Saint Martin in the French Senate.[1] She sits within the LR parliamentary group.

References

  1. ^ a b c d e "Annick Pétrus elected Senator for St. Martin". Daily Herald (Sint Maarten). 2020-09-28. Archived from the original on 2022-04-24. Retrieved 2022-04-24.
  2. ^ "Arrêté préfectoral" (PDF). smn-news.com. 2011-03-18. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2021-09-07. Retrieved 2022-04-28.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Daizey, Valerie (2017-04-18). "Annick Petrus: 3e vice-présidente et femme de passions". le97150.fr. Archived from the original on 2022-04-28. Retrieved 2022-04-28.
  4. ^ a b c "Annick Petrus n'a pas fait l'unanimité au sein de la Team Gibbs". Soualiga Post. 2020-09-27. Archived from the original on 2022-04-02. Retrieved 2022-04-28.
  5. ^ a b c "Annick Pétrus nouvelle sénatrice de Saint-Martin". Le Pélican. 2020-09-27. Archived from the original on 2021-01-21. Retrieved 2022-04-28.
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