Jean Castex (; born 25 June 1965) is a French politician who served as Prime Minister of France from 3 July 2020 to 16 May 2022. He was a member of The Republicans (LR) until 2020. Castex served for twelve years as mayor of the small town of Prades prior to his appointment as prime minister by President Emmanuel Macron. He resigned his post ahead of the 2022 legislative election. After leaving public office, he served as president of the state-owned RATP from 2022 to 2025, and has served as president of the SNCF since November 2025.
Political career Elected in 2008 as the mayor of Prades, Pyrénées-Orientales, Castex served under Health Minister Xavier Bertrand as chief of staff in François Fillon's ministry from 2010 until 2011.Michel Rose (3 July 2020), Factbox: Who is France's new prime minister, Jean Castex? Reuters. He succeeded Raymond Soubie as Secretary-General of the Élysée under President Nicolas Sarkozy between 2011 and 2012. In the UMP 2012 leadership primaries, he endorsed Fillon.Copé, Fillon et l'UMP : qui soutient qui ? L'Obs, 17 October 2012.
On the local level, Castex was a regional councillor of Languedoc-Roussillon from 2010 to 2015, and has served as department councillor of Pyrénées-Orientales since 2015. In September 2017, Castex was appointed interdepartmental delegate to the 2024 Olympics and Paralympics; he was also appointed as President of the National Sports Agency. On 2 April 2020, he was appointed coordinator of the phasing out of the lockdown implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic in France.
Castex was a member of The Republicans until early 2020, where he was regarded as being socially conservative. Following Édouard Philippe's resignation on 3 July 2020, Castex was appointed Prime Minister by President Emmanuel Macron. His appointment was described as a "doubling down on a course that is widely seen as centre-right in economic terms". Castex subsequently named his government on 6 July.
On 25 April 2022, following Macron's re-election as president, Castex agreed to resign as prime minister. Castex had previously pledged to do so if Macron was re-elected. Upon his resignation, Castex's government resigned as well, effective on 16 May.
Life after politics After leaving office, Castex was nominated by his successor Élisabeth Borne as chairman of the board of directors of the Agence de financement des infrastructures de transport de France (AFITF).Arthur Berdah (7 July 2022), Macron veut nommer Castex à la tête de l'Agence de financement des infrastructures de transport de France Le Figaro. He left the post on 10 November 2022, to be nominated to the PDG of the RATP, starting on the 28 November.
Personal life Castex, whose name means 'castles' in Gascon (), hails from the Gers. He is married to Sandra Ribelaygue;Arnaud Focraud (3 July 2020), Les multiples vies de Jean Castex, nouveau Premier ministre d'Emmanuel Macron Le Journal du Dimanche. they have four daughters.
A fluent Catalan speaker, Castex is regarded a defender of the Catalan identity in Southern France and other regional sensibilities. He is also friends with the ex-trades union leader Jean-Claude Mailly and the physician Patrick Pelloux, a former columnist at Charlie Hebdo.
Castex tested positive for COVID-19 on 23 November 2021.
Honours Ribbon bar Honour Date and comment Knight of the National Order of Merit 2006 Knight of the Legion of Honour 2020 Grand Cross of the National Order of Merit 2020 (ex officio)
See also Castex government
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Curriculum vitae