Besides his breakthrough win during France’s presidential elections, Emmanuel Macron has also gained fame for his marriage: particularly since his wife is 24 years and eight months his senior.
Incidentally, United States President Donald Trump, 70, and his wife Melania Trump, 46, have the same age difference.
However, this may be where the similarities end between both couples. Whereas Donald Trump takes centerstage alone, Macron has willingly included Trogneux in his presidential campaign, where she has been constantly present, providing political advice and helping out with his speeches, according to the Associated Press.
Bloomberg reports that Trogneux hails from a wealthy family that owns a chocolate factory in Amiens, a northern French town. She taught French literature and Latin in high school.
The couple met in 1992. He was 15 years old; she was 40 and married with three kids. He was part of the theater club she was handling in a Jesuit school, where they rewrote a play together and grew close. Trogneux admitted in a France 3 TV interview that she was charmed by his intelligence.
Following her divorce in 2004, she went to Paris to be with Macron during his studies at the National School of Administration (ENA), a prestigious school where French officials receive civil service training.
The couple married in 2007, fulfilling Macron’s wish when he was 17. They have no children but have a close relationship with Trogneux’s three children and seven grandchildren.
Macron has said, “We don’t have a classic family, that’s an undeniable reality. There is no less love in our family.”
Trogneux appears to break the mold on multiple fronts: she is known to dress trendily, unafraid to wear short skirts and leather pants, and with her outspokenness, a campaign adviser has attributed her presence as “essential” in Macron’s political pursuits.
The relationship has met its share of bashers, with Macron being accused of gay, or that Trogneux was controlling over her younger husband. This doesn’t change the fact that the pair have been married for 20 years and are constantly seen hand-in-hand in public, with little scandal other than their age.
Interviews by the Washington Post with women in France revealed that they found Macron a more appealing candidate because he broke conventions. In the past, France’s male presidents usually have had either a much younger wife or girlfriend in tow (former President Francois Hollande had a girlfriend and a secret affair during his administration). A fashion designer even concluded that Macron was “the opposite of Donald Trump” who is viewed as misogynistic due to his disrespectful remarks towards women. Niña V. Guno/JB
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