Jean-Frédéric Poisson

Jean-Frédéric Poisson (French pronunciation: [ʒɑ̃ fʁedeʁik pwasɔ̃]; born 22 January 1963) is a French right-wing politician and the president of VIA, the Way of the People (previously called the Christian Democratic Party). He was mayor of Rambouillet from 2004 to 2007, then became a National Assembly member from 2007 to 2017.

Early life and education

Poisson was born 22 January 1963 in Belfort, the son of Burgundian parents. He and his four younger siblings spent their early years in Drôme. When the 1973 oil crisis hit, their father, a technician, lost his job and the family moved to the Villeneuve-la-Garenne area of Paris. His parents divorced not long after. Poisson lived in low-income housing for fifteen years and attended 8 schools, including reformatories, and was suspended from 7. He often left classes to do odd jobs around town to help support his family. By the time he turned 19, he was the president of the local House of Youth and Culture (MJC), which organized tutoring and summer camps for foster (DDASS) children.

On 30 January 1982 at 9:15am, he claims to have been "touched by divine grace" while sitting in philosophy class. Despite having been raised agnostic, this experience made him convert to Catholicism.

Poisson graduated from the Free Faculties of Philosophy and Psychology (IPC Paris) for a licence in philosophy in 1986, then went on to pursue a PhD in philosophy in ethics from Paris-Sorbonne University. He completed his dissertation, Bioethics, ethics, and humanism: the French laws of 1994, in 2001. He returned to school in 2011 to obtain a second licence, this time a degree in labor law from the University of Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, which he completed in 2011.