Nicolas Bay (born 21 December 1977) is a French politician and

Member of the European Parliament A member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been Election, elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament. When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the European Coal and S ...

(MEP) from

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. He served as General Secretary of the National Front from 2014 to 2017. He has served as a Regional Councillor for

Normandy Normandy (; or ) is a geographical and cultural region in northwestern Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy. Normandy comprises Normandy (administrative region), mainland Normandy (a part of France) and insular N ...

since January 2016, having previously served as a Municipal Councillor for

Elbeuf Elbeuf () is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region in northern France. Geography A light industrial town situated by the banks of the Seine some south of Rouen at the junction of the D7, D321 and the D313 roads. The ...

from 2014 to 2015.

Life and career

Bay was born in

Saint-Germain-en-Laye Saint-Germain-en-Laye () is a Communes of France, commune in the Yvelines Departments of France, department in the Île-de-France in north-central France. It is located in the western suburbs of Paris, from the Kilometre Zero, centre of Paris. ...

Yvelines Yvelines () is a department in the western part of the Île-de-France region in Northern France. In 2019, it had a population of 1,448,207. He soon became the leader of the National Front's youth wing (FNJ) in the

Yvelines Yvelines () is a department in the western part of the Île-de-France region in Northern France. In 2019, it had a population of 1,448,207.Île-de-France The Île-de-France (; ; ) is the most populous of the eighteen regions of France, with an official estimated population of 12,271,794 residents on 1 January 2023. Centered on the capital Paris, it is located in the north-central part of the cou ...

region. In 1998, along with Guillaume Peltier, he founded the Youth Christian Action Association (AJAC), a movement which opposed the PACS and

euthanasia Euthanasia (from : + ) is the practice of intentionally ending life to eliminate pain and suffering. Different countries have different Legality of euthanasia, euthanasia laws. The British House of Lords Select committee (United Kingdom), se ...

. It claimed around 250 members and was close to the National Republican Movement (MNR), led by Bruno Mégret. In 1998, during the FN split, he joined Bruno Mégret's National Republican Movement, first as deputy national director of the National Movement of Youth (youth branch of the MNR) and later as responsible for elections within the party. He was one of the two MNR municipal councillors elected in

Sartrouville Sartrouville () is a communes of France, commune in the Yvelines departments of France, department, Île-de-France, north central France. it is located in the north-western suburbs of Paris, from the Kilometre Zero, center of Paris. Name In the ...

(

Yvelines Yvelines () is a department in the western part of the Île-de-France region in Northern France. In 2019, it had a population of 1,448,207.2001 French municipal elections Municipal elections were held in France on 11 and 18 March 2001. These elections were marked by a setback for the left and a victory for the right one year before the 2002 presidential election. However, the capital, Paris and the second larges ...

when his list won 11.3% of the votes. He was candidate in the Yvelines' 5th constituency in the

2002 elections The following elections occurred in the year 2002. * 2002 Bahraini parliamentary election * 2002 Comorian presidential election * 2002 East Timorese presidential election * 2002 Fijian municipal election * 2002 Hong Kong Chief Executive election * ...

. In the 2004 regional election he was the MNR's top candidate in

Île-de-France The Île-de-France (; ; ) is the most populous of the eighteen regions of France, with an official estimated population of 12,271,794 residents on 1 January 2023. Centered on the capital Paris, it is located in the north-central part of the cou ...

, winning 1.18% of the vote. As the MNR's top candidate in the

European constituency in the 2004 European election, he won only 0.28% of the vote. He retained his seat in the Sartrouville municipal council in the 2008 local elections, but his list won only 5.2% of the vote. As a result, he is the MNR's only local councillor in French municipalities with more than 3,000 inhabitants. Upon Mégret's resignation from the leadership of the MNR in May 2008, Bay and his allies won leadership of the party. However, due to his increasing contacts with the FN and

Marine Le Pen Marion Anne Perrine "Marine" Le Pen (; born 5 August 1968) is a French lawyer and politician of the far-right National Rally, National Rally party (RN). She served as the party's president from 2011 to 2021, and ran for the French presidency in ...

in particular, the party council decided to remove him from the party in September 2008. Although he is not a member of the FN, instead head of a political club ('National Convergences'), he was on the FN's list (led by Marine Le Pen) in the North-West constituency in the 2009 European election. Despite protests from within the party, he was selected to be National Front's candidate in

Upper Normandy Upper Normandy (, ; ) is a former administrative region of France. On 1 January 2016, Upper and Lower Normandy merged becoming one region called Normandy. History It was created in 1956 from two departments: Seine-Maritime and Eure, when Norm ...

for the 2010 regional elections. As a

eurosceptic Euroscepticism, also spelled as Euroskepticism or EU-scepticism, is a political position involving criticism of the European Union (EU) and European integration. It ranges from those who oppose some EU institutions and policies and seek refor ...

, he firmly defended the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

Brexit Brexit (, a portmanteau of "Britain" and "Exit") was the Withdrawal from the European Union, withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU). Brexit officially took place at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February ...

decision.

Personal life

He was a boy scout in the

Scouts Unitaires de France The Scouts Unitaires de France (''Unitary Scouts of France'', SUF) is a French Catholic Scouting movement created in 1971. It is the third largest Scout movement in France. From 1964 to 1970 the Scouts et Guides de France, Scouts de France prep ...

. He is a self-declared

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

, and he participated in the protests against same-sex marriage law in 2013. He married in 2008 and has 3 children.

Suspension from National Rally

On 15 February 2022, French media reported that Bay had been suspended from the National Rally due to his alleged support of Le Pen's challenger

Éric Zemmour Éric Justin Léon Zemmour (; born 31 August 1958) is a French History of far-right movements in France, far-right politician, essayist, writer and political journalist and pundit. He was an editor and panelist on ''Face à l'Info'', a daily show ...

. He considered these accusations unfounded. The next day, he filed a complaint and lawsuit against the RN for defamation. On 16 February 2022, he announced his support for candidate Éric Zemmour for the presidential election and join

Reconquête Reconquête (, ), stylised as Reconquête! (often shortened as R!), is a far-right political party in France founded in late 2021 by Éric Zemmour, who has since served as its leader. He was a candidate in the 2022 presidential election, in w ...

where he was named Vice-President.

Assumed offices

*March 2001: First candidature, as list's head, in municipal elections in Sartrouville, Yvelines (11.3%), first election as Municipal Counsellor. Re-elected in March 2008 * 21 March 2010: Elected Regional Counsellor in Upper Normandy (14.3%), President of FN's group in the Council * 23 March 2014: Elected Municipal Counsellor in

and Communal Counsellor CREA (Community of the agglomeration Rouen Elbeuf Austreberthe). Respecting the new law about not cumulating offices, Nicolas Bay dropped his municipal Counsellor office in Elbeuf the 16 March 2015 * 25 May 2014: Elected French deputy in the European Parliament (running on Marine Le Pen's North-West France list, 33,62%). Member of the ITRE commission. Member of interparliamentary ACP-EU delegation and substitute member of relation with Israel delegation * December 2015: Leads FN's list in Normandy for the regional elections, winning 27.50% of the vote in the second round (three ways election). President of FN's group in the regional Council of Normandy * 9 June 2024: Re-elected as

Political functions

*1997-1998: Departmental Secretary for the Front National's youth wing (FNJ) in the Yvelines * 2005-2008: General Secretary of the National Republican Movement (MNR) * 2008: Creation of Convergences nationales (CN) and support to

Jean-Marie Le Pen Jean Louis Marie Le Pen (20 June 1928 – 7 January 2025), commonly known as Jean-Marie Le Pen (), was a French politician, lawyer and activist. He founded the far-right National Front (now National Rally) party and served as the party's presi ...

's presidential candidature * Since 20 January 2011: Member of National Rally's political bureau * 10 January 2012 - 22 April 2012: Spokesman of Marine Le Pen's presidential campaign * 8 December 2012: named Assistant General Secretary of the National Front, in charge of regional federations * March 2013: Director of 2014 National Front's campaign for municipal elections * Since 30 November 2014: Named General Secretary of National Front by Marine Le Pen in FN's Lyon Congress * March 2015: Director of Front National's campaign for departmental elections * February 2022: Vice-President of

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bay, Nicolas 1977 births Living people Paris Nanterre University alumni MEPs for North-West France 2014–2019 MEPs for France 2019–2024 National Rally MEPs People from Saint-Germain-en-Laye National Rally politicians Politicians from Normandy People from Sartrouville Reconquête politicians MEPs for France 2024–2029