Harlem Désir, France's first black president?

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http://www.france24.com/en/20121016-harlem-desir-profile-france-socialist-party-chief-making-first-black-president


As the new Socialist Party boss, Harlem Désir is the first black politician to lead a major French party.© AFP

Members of France’s ruling Socialist Party overwhelmingly picked Harlem Désir as party chief during the group’s congress in the southwest city of Toulouse on Thursday. The vote made Désir the first black man to lead a major political party in France, placing him on a political fast track to the French presidency.

The outcome of the vote came as no surprise. Désir, 52, has served as interim party chief ever since Lille city mayor Martine Aubry stepped down in June 2011 to take part in presidential primaries. Aubry resigned from her post last month, all but naming Désir as her successor.

While there is no guarantee the Socialist Party (PS) will also pick Désir as a presidential nominee one day, recent history suggests he can now aspire to the country’s top job.
French President François Hollande was the leader of the PS from 1997 to 2008, and François Mitterrand – the only other Socialist president in recent history – was party chief from 1971 to 1981.

[kestrel91316]

1. He's black??