Alain Émile Louis Marie Poher (; 17 April 1909 – 9 December 1996) was a French politician who served as

President of the Senate President of the Senate is a title often given to the presiding officer of a senate. It corresponds to the Speaker (politics), speaker in some other assemblies. The senate president often ranks high in a jurisdiction's Order of succession, succes ...

from 1968 to 1992. In this capacity, he was twice briefly acting

President of France The president of France, officially the president of the French Republic (), is the executive head of state of France, and the commander-in-chief of the French Armed Forces. As the presidency is the supreme magistracy of the country, the po ...

, in 1969 and 1974 following the resignation of

Charles de Gaulle Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle (22 November 18909 November 1970) was a French general and statesman who led the Free France, Free French Forces against Nazi Germany in World War II and chaired the Provisional Government of the French Re ...

and the death of

Georges Pompidou Georges Jean Raymond Pompidou ( ; ; 5 July 19112 April 1974) was a French politician who served as President of France from 1969 until his death in 1974. He previously served as Prime Minister of France under President Charles de Gaulle from 19 ...

respectively. Poher was affiliated with the

Popular Republican Movement The Popular Republican Movement (, MRP) was a Christian-democratic political party in France during the Fourth Republic. Its base was the Catholic vote and its leaders included Georges Bidault, Robert Schuman, Paul Coste-Floret, Pierre-Henr ...

(MRP) until 1966 and later with the Democratic Centre (CD) and

Centre of Social Democrats The Centre of Social Democrats (French: ''Centre des démocrates sociaux'', , CDS; also translated as the "Democratic and Social Centre") was a Christian-democratic and centrist political party in France. It existed from 1976 to 1995 and was base ...

(CSD), which he joined in 1976. A native of

Ablon-sur-Seine Ablon-sur-Seine (, literally ''Ablon on Seine'') is a Communes of France, commune in the Val-de-Marne Departments of France, department in the southeastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the Kilometre Zero, centre of Paris. Ablon h ...

south of

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, Poher was a longtime member of the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

(1946–1948; 1952–1995), where he sat first for

Seine-et-Oise Seine-et-Oise () is a former department of France, which encompassed the western, northern and southern parts of the metropolitan area of Paris. Its prefecture was Versailles and its administrative number was 78. Seine-et-Oise was disbanded in ...

until 1968 and then

Val-de-Marne Val-de-Marne (, "Vale of the Marne") is a department of France located in the Île-de-France region. Named after the river Marne, it is situated in the Grand Paris metropolis to the southeast of the City of Paris. In 2019, Val-de-Marne had a ...

. He also served as

President of the European Parliament The president of the European Parliament presides over the debates and activities of the European Parliament. They also represent the Parliament within the European Union (EU) and internationally. The president's signature is required for Euro ...

from 1966 to 1969. As the longest-serving President of the Senate and the sole unelected President of France under the Fifth Republic, Poher remained an influential figure in 20th-century French politics. He ran in the 1969 presidential election but was defeated by Pompidou in the second round. Poher died at the age of 87 in December 1996, a year after his retirement from the Senate.

Early career

Poher was born in

, current-day Val-de-Marne, to a family from

Brittany Brittany ( ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the north-west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica in Roman Gaul. It became an Kingdom of Brittany, independent kingdom and then a Duch ...

. He graduated from the

Lycée Louis-le-Grand The Lycée Louis-le-Grand (), also referred to simply as Louis-le-Grand or by its acronym LLG, is a public Lycée (French secondary school, also known as sixth form college) located on Rue Saint-Jacques (Paris), rue Saint-Jacques in central Par ...

and the

Lycée Saint-Louis The Lycée Saint-Louis () is a selective post-secondary school located in the 6th arrondissement of Paris, 6th arrondissement of Paris, in the Latin Quarter. It is the only state-funded French lycée that exclusively offers ''Classe Préparatoir ...

and later studied law. On 19 August 1938 he married Henriette Tugler (1907–2004) in

La Baule-Escoublac La Baule-Escoublac (; Gallo: ''Écoubiâ'', , ), commonly referred to as La Baule, is a commune in Loire-Atlantique, a department in Pays de la Loire, western France. History Seaside resort In 1879, when the Saint-Nazaire- Croisic railroa ...

, with whom he had two daughters, Marie-Agnès (born 1940) and Marie-Thérèse (1944–2002). His administrative career began in 1938 when he became a junior executive officer at the Ministry of Finance. In

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, he was wounded in combat after being sent to the front lines to defend against the German invasion. Later, he became a member of the

French Resistance The French Resistance ( ) was a collection of groups that fought the German military administration in occupied France during World War II, Nazi occupation and the Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy#France, collaborationist Vic ...

against

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

. In the aftermath of the Liberation of France, he served in several political positions prior to entering the Senate: chairman at the Ministry of Finance's Liberation Committee (from 20 July 1944); head of Social Services, Ministry of Finance (from 1 January 1945); and Mayor of Ablon-sur-Seine (from 18 May 1945). Alain Poher

He was also General Commissioner for German and Austrian Affairs (1948–1950); Secretary of State for the Budget in the second government of Prime Minister

Robert Schuman Jean-Baptiste Nicolas Robert Schuman (; 29 June 1886 – 4 September 1963) was a Luxembourg-born France, French statesman. Schuman was a Christian democrat, Christian democratic (Popular Republican Movement) political thinker and activist. ...

and first government of Prime Minister Henri Queuille (1948); Secretary of State for the Armed Forces (Navy) in the government of Prime Minister Félix Gaillard (1957–1958); and president of the ''Association des maires de France'' or AMF (1974–1983). A longtime ally and political protégé of Schuman, Poher was reelected to the Senate in 1952, where he remained for over 40 years, until 1995. As a Senator, he continued to serve in government (as Secretary of State for the Armed Forces, tasked with the Navy, in the government of Prime Minister Félix Gaillard in the late 1950s), in addition to his duties as mayor of his home town, Ablon-sur-Seine. Like Schuman, he was known for strongly pro-European integration positions; he served as

from 1966 to 1969.

President of the Senate

During his tenure, Poher served with the Gaullist government of Prime Minister Maurice Couve de Murville, Charles de Gaulle's close ally. Some even referred to this period as the first

cohabitation Cohabitation is an arrangement where people who are not legally married live together as a couple. They are often involved in a Romance (love), romantic or Sexual intercourse, sexually intimate relationship on a long-term or permanent basis. ...

. Despite sharp political differences, Poher was widely credited for model cooperation with the government.

Acting President of France

According to the

order of succession An order, line or right of succession is the line of individuals necessitated to hold a high office when it becomes vacated, such as head of state or an honour such as a title of nobility.Constitution of the Fifth Republic The current Constitution of France was adopted on 4 October 1958. It is typically called the Constitution of the Fifth Republic , and it replaced the Constitution of the Fourth Republic of 1946 with the exception of the preamble per a 1971 d ...

, the

assumes the nation's presidential powers and duties following the president's death or resignation; the officeholder thus becomes ''ad interim'' head of state until the next early presidential election. Poher's first service as interim president came on 29 April 1969, when

resigned. Previously he was one of Charles de Gaulle's most notable political opponents and played a key role in the successful "no" campaign in the final referendum of his presidency. During his interim presidency, Poher continued to serve as Senate President. However, he resided during this time in the

Élysée Palace The Élysée Palace (, ) is the official residence of the President of France, President of the French Republic in Paris. Completed in 1722, it was built for Louis Henri de La Tour d'Auvergne, a nobleman and army officer who had been appointed g ...

as acting president. Initially, Poher tried to recruit General Marie-Pierre Kœnig as a candidate for the presidency and offered him his full support. Kœnig, however, declined to run, citing his poor health and stating that one general should not replace another general as the head of state. After Kœnig's refusal, Poher himself announced his candidacy. Due to favourable polls, he was viewed as the strongest opponent of

and the only non-

Gaullist Gaullism ( ) is a French political stance based on the thought and action of World War II French Resistance leader Charles de Gaulle, who would become the founding President of the Fifth French Republic. De Gaulle withdrew French forces from t ...

candidate who had a real opportunity to win the election. The lack of a longstanding party machine nevertheless hurt his chances. During his short term in office Poher's main task was overseeing the incoming election, in which he himself participated. However, during his tenure he took some major initiatives; notably, he fired longtime Charles de Gaulle confidant Jacques Foccart, a Secretary-General for African Affairs as well as, unofficially, the chief of the Gaullist secret services, who returned to the Élysée after Pompidou's election. Poher also ordered the directors of France's state-controlled radio and television networks to keep public media politically neutral and refrain from acting in the interest of any particular party. His successors followed this precedent. He also ordered the redeployment of a large police force in Paris in the wake of the

May 68 May 68 () was a period of widespread protests, strikes, and civil unrest in France that began in May 1968 and became one of the most significant social uprisings in modern European history. Initially sparked by student demonstrations agains ...

events. His accomplishments helped Poher, previously largely unknown to the public, develop significant popularity during his interim presidency, despite his defeat in the election. He served again as ''ad interim'' head of state in 1974 after Pompidou died in office. This time, however, he did not run for his own term and stepped down after

Valéry Giscard d'Estaing Valéry René Marie Georges Giscard d'Estaing (, ; ; 2 February 19262 December 2020), also known as simply Giscard or VGE, was a French politician who served as President of France from 1974 to 1981. After serving as Ministry of the Economy ...

was elected against

François Mitterrand François Maurice Adrien Marie Mitterrand (26 October 19168 January 1996) was a French politician and statesman who served as President of France from 1981 to 1995, the longest holder of that position in the history of France. As a former First ...

Political career

* Interim President of the French Republic: 28 April – 20 June 1969, 2 April – 27 May 1974 Government functions * Secretary of State for the Budget: 5 September – 20 November 1948 * Secretary of State for the Navy: 11 November 1957 – 14 May 1958 Electoral mandates ''European Parliament'' * President of the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the two legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it ...

: 1966–1969 ''Senate'' * Senator for

: 1946–1948, 1952–1995 * President of the

Senate of France The Senate (, ) is the upper house of the French Parliament, with the lower house being the National Assembly (France), National Assembly, the two houses constituting the legislature of France. It is made up of 348 senators (''sénateurs'' and ...

: 1968–1992 ''Local'' * Mayor of

: 1945–1983

References

, - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Poher, Alain 1909 births 1996 deaths People from Val-de-Marne French Roman Catholics Popular Republican Movement politicians Democratic Centre (France) politicians Centre of Social Democrats politicians Union for French Democracy politicians Acting presidents of France 20th-century heads of state of France Secretaries of State of France Presidents of the Senate (France) French senators of the Fourth Republic French senators of the Fifth Republic Senators of Seine-et-Oise Senators of Val-de-Marne Candidates in the 1969 French presidential election Democratic Centre (France) MEPs Presidents of the European Parliament MEPs for France 1958–1979 Lycée Louis-le-Grand alumni Lycée Saint-Louis alumni Sciences Po alumni Mines Paris - PSL alumni French Resistance members French people of the First Indochina War French people of the Algerian War Grand Crosses with Star and Sash of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany