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Events on Wednesday 16 May 2007 2
1995 – 2007Premiere dame of FranceFirst lady, twelve yearsDuring Jacques Chirac's presidency Bernadette serves as première dame, making the Élysée a place where her approval carried weight. Witty but formidable, she was hugely popular with the French public.
2007Leaves the ElyseeSucceeded by SarkozyChirac leaves the presidency on 16 May 2007, succeeded by Nicolas Sarkozy, after twelve years in office. In 2011 a Paris court convicts him of misuse of public funds from his time as mayor.