Overview

• Fournier is serving as minister délégué chargé de la ruralité in Sébastien Lecornu’s new government, succeeding Françoise Gatel.
• He reports discovering his nomination Sunday night at home while watching TV, two days after a discussion with Lecornu.
• According to his account, neither the prime minister nor his cabinet informed him before the public announcement.
• The 75-year-old is mayor of Les Voivres in the Vosges and president of the Association des maires ruraux de France.
• He has described difficulty adjusting to Parisian life, formal protocol, and the near-constant presence of a security detail.