Editing Lionel Jospin (section)

===Career===
After his graduation from the ENA in 1965, Jospin entered the [[Ministry of Foreign Affairs (France)|Ministry of Foreign Affairs]] as secretary of Foreign Affairs. He became in charge of economic cooperation there, and worked with [[Ernest-Antoine Seillière]], future leader of the [[MEDEF]] employers' union.

Representative of a generation of left-wingers who criticized the old [[French Section of the Workers' International|SFIO]] Socialist Party, he joined a [[Trotskyist]] group, the [[Internationalist Communist Organization]] (OCI) in the 1960s, before entering the renewed [[Socialist Party (France)|Socialist Party]] (PS) in 1971. Joining [[François Mitterrand]]'s circle, he became the second highest-ranking member of the party in 1979, then its First Secretary when Mitterrand was elected president of France in 1981. When President Mitterrand decided, in 1982–83, to change his economic policy to give priority to the struggle against inflation and for a hard currency, Jospin justified his choice. After [[Laurent Fabius]] was chosen as prime minister in 1984, a rivalry between these two political heirs of Mitterrand broke out when they competed for the leadership of the [[1986 French legislative election|1986 legislative campaign]].

In 1988, after Mitterrand's [[1988 French presidential election|reelection]], Jospin left the PS leadership, and, though Mitterrand considered naming him prime minister, he was nominated for [[Minister of National Education (France)|minister of education]]. Under Jospin's tenure as education minister, teacher training was consolidated, the lycees and universities were reformed, teachers' salaries improved, and technical and vocational education were reformed, which the socialists saw as a means of improving economic performance, tackling youth unemployment, and attaining social justice.<ref>{{Google books |id=NeSnLYEKPnYC |page=104 |title=Schools and Work: Technical and Vocational Education in France Since the Third Republic }}</ref>

Jospin's rivalry with Fabius intensified and caused an internal crisis, notably during the [[Rennes Congress]] (1990). The party's ''mitterrandist'' faction split because Jospin's followers allied with the other factions to prevent Fabius's election as First Secretary. This damaged Jospin's relationship with Mitterrand and, after the Socialist Party's failure in the March 1992 local elections, Jospin was not included in the new government formed by [[Pierre Bérégovoy]].

As a member of the National Assembly, Jospin served first as a representative of Paris (1978–86), and then of [[Haute-Garonne]] ''département'' (1986–88). He lost his seat in the National Assembly in the Socialists' landslide defeat in the [[1993 French legislative election|1993 legislative election]] and announced his political retirement.

In 1993, Jospin was appointed ''ministre plénipotentiaire'', 2nd class<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/affichTexte.do?cidTexte=JORFTEXT000000712585 |title=Décret du 1er mars 1993 portant nomination au grade de ministre plénipotentiaire de 2e classe (agents diplomatiques et consulaires) |language=fr |publisher=Legifrance.gouv.fr |access-date=21 July 2016 |archive-date=23 August 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160823005528/https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/affichTexte.do?cidTexte=JORFTEXT000000712585 |url-status=live }}</ref> (a rank of ambassador), a position he held until his appointment as prime minister in 1997,<ref>[http://legifrance.gouv.fr/jopdf/common/jo_pdf.jsp?numJO=0&dateJO=19970603&numTexte=&pageDebut=08860&pageFin=19970603 Decree of 2 June 1997] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200921003206/https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/jopdf/common/jo_pdf.jsp?numJO=0&dateJO=19970603&numTexte=&pageDebut=08860&pageFin=19970603 |date=21 September 2020 }} of president [[Jacques Chirac]] appointing Lionel Jospin Prime Minister</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/affichTexte.do?cidTexte=JORFTEXT000000551247 |title=Arrêté du 3 juillet 1997 portant détachement (agents diplomatiques et consulaires) |language=fr |publisher=Legifrance.gouv.fr |access-date=21 July 2016 |archive-date=22 August 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160822234106/https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/affichTexte.do?cidTexte=JORFTEXT000000551247 |url-status=live }}</ref> but he was not appointed to any embassy.<ref>[[Jean-Michel Aphatie]], [http://www.lexpress.fr/informations/comment-jospin-a-ressuscite-jospin_623024.html ''Comment Jospin a ressuscité Jospin''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110204104116/http://www.lexpress.fr/informations/comment-jospin-a-ressuscite-jospin_623024.html|date=4 February 2011}}, [[L'Express (France)|L'Express]], 5 June 1997</ref>

In 1995, Jospin claimed a necessity to "take stock" of the ''mitterrandist'' inheritance so as to restore the credibility of the Socialist Party. He was selected as the Socialist candidate for president against the PS leader [[Henri Emmanuelli]]. In the run-up to the election, Jospin made various policy proposals,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://miroirs.ironie.org/socialisme/www.psinfo.net/elections/president/1995/index.html |title=Élection présidentielle de 1995 |publisher=Miroirs.ironie.org |access-date=21 July 2016 |archive-date=3 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303231051/http://miroirs.ironie.org/socialisme/www.psinfo.net/elections/president/1995/index.html |url-status=live }}</ref> such as a programme for the environment, an extension of social services, a housebuilding programme, the rebuilding of run-down parts of cities, and a 37-hour workweek.<ref>The Mitterrand Years: Legacy and Evaluation edited by Mairi Maclean</ref>

Following the Socialists' landslide defeats of 1992–94, Jospin was considered to have little chance of victory. But he did surprisingly well, leading in the first round and losing only very narrowly to [[Jacques Chirac]] in the final runoff election. His performance was seen to mark a revival of the Socialists as a strong force in French politics and he returned to being the party's First Secretary.

Jospin built a new coalition with the other left-wing parties: the [[French Communist Party]], the [[Greens (France)|Greens]], the [[Left Radical Party]] and the dissident [[Citizen and Republican Movement]]. Two years later, Chirac decided to call an early election for the National Assembly, hoping for a personal endorsement. The move backfired: the "[[Plural Left]]" won a parliamentary majority and Jospin became prime minister.

Jospin is a Member of the [[Club of Madrid]].<ref>{{in lang|en}} [http://www.clubmadrid.org The Club of Madrid is an independent organization dedicated to strengthening democracy around the world by drawing on the unique experience and resources of its Members – 66 democratic former heads of state and government. ] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171114204710/http://www.clubmadrid.org/ |date=14 November 2017 }}</ref>