Manuel Valls

This article is about the French politician. For the Spanish composer, see Manuel Valls (composer).
In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Valls and the second or maternal family name is Galfetti.

Manuel Valls
Valls in 2015
Councillor in Barcelona
In office
15 June 2019 – 31 August 2021
Prime Minister of France
In office
31 March 2014 – 6 December 2016
PresidentFrançois Hollande
Preceded byJean-Marc Ayrault
Succeeded byBernard Cazeneuve
Minister of the Interior
In office
16 May 2012 – 1 April 2014
Prime MinisterJean-Marc Ayrault
Preceded byClaude Guéant
Succeeded byBernard Cazeneuve
Mayor of Évry
In office
18 March 2001 – 24 May 2012
Preceded byChristian Olivier
Succeeded byFrancis Chouat
Member of the National Assembly
for Essonne's 1st constituency
In office
19 June 2002 – 3 October 2018
Preceded byJacques Guyard
Succeeded byFrancis Chouat
Personal details
Born
Manuel Carlos Valls Galfetti

(1962-08-13) 13 August 1962 (age 62)
Barcelona, Spain
Citizenship
  • Spain
  • France
Political party France
Socialist Party (1980–2017)
Renaissance (2021–present)
 Spain
Valents (2019–2023)
Spouse(s)
Nathalie Soulié
​
​
(m. 1987, divorced)​

​
​
(m. 2010; div. 2018)​

Susana Gallardo
​
(m. 2019)​
Children4
Parent
RelativesAurelio Galfetti (uncle)
Alma materPantheon-Sorbonne University

Manuel Carlos Valls Galfetti (French: [manɥɛl kaʁlos vals ɡalfɛti], Catalan: [mənuˈɛl ˈkaɾloz ˈbaʎz ɡalˈfeti], Spanish: [maˈnwel ˈkaɾlos ˈβals ɣalˈfeti]; born 13 August 1962) is a French-Spanish[1][2] politician who, most recently, served as a Barcelona city councillor from 2019 to 2021. He served as Prime Minister of France from 2014 until 2016 under president François Hollande.

Born in Barcelona to a Spanish father and a Swiss mother, Valls was mayor of Évry from 2001 to 2012 and was first elected to the National Assembly of France for Essonne in 2002. He was regarded as belonging to the Socialist Party's social liberal wing, sharing common orientations with Blairism. He was Minister of the Interior from 2012 to 2014 and Prime Minister from 2014 to 2016. He was a candidate in the Socialist Party primary for the 2017 French presidential election, losing the Socialist nomination in the second round to Benoît Hamon. Following his defeat, he endorsed Emmanuel Macron despite having previously pledged to support the Socialist candidate.

In the 2017 French legislative election, Valls was re-elected by a narrow margin as Member of Parliament. He then left the Socialist Party and joined La République En Marche group (LREM) in the National Assembly, although he did not formally join the party. In October 2018, he resigned from the National Assembly to run for mayor in the 2019 Barcelona City Council election supported by the centrist Ciudadanos party. He came in fourth in the election. Valls is also a past opponent of the Catalan independence movement.

In 2022, Valls attempted to return to the National Assembly as a member of LREM for the fifth constituency for French residents overseas. but was unsuccessful after coming third in the vote.[3]

  1. ^ "S'il échoue à Barcelone, Manuel Valls arrêtera "sans doute" la politique". 10 January 2018. Archived from the original on 4 January 2019. Retrieved 4 January 2019.
  2. ^ "Valls candidat à la mairie de Barcelone ? "Il sait qu'il est un peu cramé en France"". 21 April 2018. Archived from the original on 5 January 2019. Retrieved 4 January 2019.
  3. ^ "Our Campaigns - French National Assembly - Overseas 5th Race - Jun 05, 2022". Archived from the original on 3 September 2023. Retrieved 6 June 2022.