Lionel Jospin, the French politician who served as prime minister from 1997 to 2002, died on March 22, 2026, at age 88 from complications from surgery.
He was minister of national education from 1988 to 1992 and served on the Constitutional Council from 2015 to 2019. Jospin was also first secretary of the Socialist Party from 1995 to 1997 and its candidate for president in 1995 and 2002.
Born in Meudon in 1937, he was defeated by Jacques Chirac in the 1995 presidential runoff and was eliminated in the first round of the 2002 election before announcing his retirement from politics.
Lionel Robert Jospin (French: [ljɔnɛl ʁɔbɛʁ ʒɔspɛ̃]; 12 July 1937 – 22 March 2026) was a French politician who served as prime minister from 1997 to 2002.