Nadine Morano
Member of the European Parliament
Assumed office
1 July 2014
ConstituencyFrance
Minister for Apprenticeship and Professional Formation
In office
14 November 2010 – 10 May 2012
PresidentNicolas Sarkozy
Prime MinisterFrançois Fillon
Preceded byNicole Péry
Succeeded byThierry Repentin
Secretary of State in charge of the Family and the Solidarity
In office
23 June 2009 – 13 November 2010
PresidentNicolas Sarkozy
Prime MinisterFrançois Fillon
Preceded byValérie Létard
Succeeded byClaude Greff
Secretary of State in charge of the Family
In office
18 March 2008 – 23 June 2009
PresidentNicolas Sarkozy
Prime MinisterFrançois Fillon
Preceded byXavier Bertrand
Succeeded byherself
Member of the National Assembly for
Meurthe-et-Moselle's 5th constituency
In office
19 June 2002 – 19 April 2008
Preceded byNicole Feidt
Succeeded byPhilippe Morenvillier
Personal details
Born
Nadine Pucelle (change by Presidential Decret of 1976 to Nadine Pugelle)

(1963-11-06) 6 November 1963 (age 60)
Nancy, Lorraine
NationalityFrench
Political partyLes Républicains
Children3
Alma materUniversity of Lorraine

Nadine Morano (French pronunciation: [nadin mɔʁaˈno]; born 6 November 1963 in Nancy) is a French politician of the Republicans who has been serving as Member of the European Parliament since 2014. She previously was a member of the National Assembly and a minister.

Early life

Morano was born on 6 November 1963 in Nancy, France.[1][2] Her father was a truck driver.[3] Her mother, Monique Generelli, was a switchboard operator, daughter of a Piedmontese mason from Verbano-Cusio-Ossola.[4]

Political career

Morano served as a member of the National Assembly from 2002 to 2008, representing Meurthe-et-Moselle.[1] In parliament, she was a member of the Committee on Cultural Affairs (2002-2007) and the Defense Committee (2007-2008).[5]

Morano served as the Deputy Minister for Apprenticeship and Vocational Training under the Minister of Labour, Employment and Health, Xavier Bertrand. She was previously Secretary of State for Family in the government of François Fillon on 18 March 2008.

Member of the European Parliament, 2014–present

Morano was elected Member of the European Parliament in the 2014 European elections, representing East France. She has since been serving on the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy. In addition to her committee assignments, she is a member of the Parliament's delegation for relations with the Pan-African Parliament (PAP).

Ahead of the 2015 French regional elections, the Republicans' chair Nicolas Sarkozy removed Morano – then considered one of his staunchest allies – from the party's list after she state that France was a "white race" country that must stay that way.[6]

Later that year, Morano announced her intention to compete for a presidential nomination in the Republicans' primaries for the 2017 presidential elections.[7] She later supported François Fillon as her party's candidate before urging him to withdraw his bid amid the so-called Fillon affair.[8] In the Republicans' 2017 leadership election, she endorsed Laurent Wauquiez.[9]

Ahead of the 2022 presidential elections, Morano publicly declared her support for Michel Barnier as the Republicans' candidate.[10]

In 2023, the Republicans' chairman Éric Ciotti appointed Morano as member of his shadow cabinet and put her in charge of the party's immigration policies.[11]

Controversy

Morano is a frequent user of social media whose outspoken style and running commentary are a frequent source of mockery.[7] French daily Le Monde has created a web page, dubbed the "Moranator," that generates real phrases the politician has used and allows visitors to post them to their Twitter pages.[7]

In September 2015, Morano quoted General Charles de Gaulle on On n'est pas couché, saying that "France is a Judeo-Christian country, of white race".[12] This resulted in her removal as head of the Les Républicains (the former UMP) list for the regional elections in Meurthe-et-Moselle.[12]

In 2019, Morano faced allegations of racism when she criticized the way government spokesperson Sibeth Ndiaye dressed as "circus clothes", adding that Ndiaye became a French citizen "only" three years before, "clearly with big gaps over French culture, unworthy of her government post". Gilles Le Gendre, who chaired the La République En Marche group in the National Assembly at the time, called on Morano to withdraw her comments and apologize or be prosecuted.[13]

In 2020, Morano stated that French actress Aïssa Maïga, who was born in Senegal, should "go back to Africa" if she "was not happy with seeing so many white people in France".[14][15]

Recognition

On 6 November 2007, Morano was among the guests invited to the state dinner hosted by U.S. President George W. Bush in honor of President Nicolas Sarkozy at the White House.[16]

Personal life

Morano has been divorced; she has two sons and a daughter.[4]

External links

References

  1. ^ a b "Mme Nadine Morano". National Assembly. Retrieved 16 October 2016.
  2. ^ "Nadine Morano". European Parliament. Retrieved 16 October 2016.
  3. ^ "Nadine Morano, sa spéciale dédicace aux routards". Le Point. 19 October 2013. Retrieved 16 October 2016.
  4. ^ a b Quemener, Soazig (17 January 2012). "Nadine Morano, l'atout peuple". Le Journal du Dimanche. Retrieved 16 October 2016.
  5. ^ Nadine Morano National Assembly.
  6. ^ Ingrid Melander (30 September 2015), France's Sarkozy disowns ally over 'white race' comments Reuters.
  7. ^ a b c Melo, Sofia (1 October 2015). "Sarkozy threatens to oust party member over 'white race' comment". Politico Europe. Retrieved 16 April 2017.
  8. ^ Elaine Ganley (4 March 2017), French candidate going it alone amid campaign defections Associated Press.
  9. ^ Ludovic Vigogne (11 October 2017), La liste des 136 parrains de Laurent Wauquiez L'Opinion.
  10. ^ Emmanuel Galiero (23 November 2021), Nadine Morano: «Pourquoi j’ai décidé de soutenir Michel Barnier» Le Parisien.
  11. ^ Christine Ollivier (13 May 2023), EXCLUSIF. Éric Ciotti dévoile son contre-gouvernement Le Journal du Dimanche.
  12. ^ a b Lemarié, Alexandre (8 October 2015). "Nadine Morano, incarnation de la dérive droitière". Le Monde. Retrieved 16 October 2016.
  13. ^ Elaine Sciolino (2 October 2019), She Speaks for France’s President. And ‘Explosions of Color.’ The New York Times.
  14. ^ Julia Webster Ayuso (2 July 2020). "The thin, white lie: challenging the 'French women' stereotype". The Guardian.
  15. ^ "Morano propose à Aïssa Maïga de "repartir en Afrique si elle n'est pas contente"". 29 February 2020.
  16. ^ Guest List for the Social Dinner in Honor of His Excellency Nicolas Sarkozy President of the French Republic Office of the First Lady of the United States, press release of 6 November 2007.
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