06.06.2026 Following the announcement of Bernadette Chirac’s death at the age of 93 on Saturday, June 6, reactions poured in, both on social media and on television. After Emmanuel Macron’s appearance on his social media account, politicians took to the airwaves to pay tribute to the former First Lady. Among them was Nicolas Sarkozy, one of her “loyal friends,” as the former president stated on his social media account.
https://x.com/EmmanuelMacron/status/2063187801248522557?s=20
Asserting that Jacques Chirac’s widow had always “supported him politically and personally,” he admitted he couldn’t “choose among all the wonderful and painful memories [they] shared together over the past fifty years.” In his tribute, accompanied by a photo of the deceased, Nicolas Sarkozy added: “France has lost a woman who always served it with passion and dignity. She brought honor to our country. An era ends with her passing. Like many French people, I feel a deep nostalgia for her.”
Avec la disparition de Bernadette Chirac, je perds une grande amie qui m’a toujours soutenu politiquement comme personnellement. Elle était fidèle, courageuse, drôle, intransigeante, affectueuse. Je ne saurais choisir entre tous les souvenirs merveilleux comme douloureux que nous… pic.twitter.com/bflPeI5DGp
— Nicolas Sarkozy (@NicolasSarkozy) June 6, 2026
For his part, Bruno Retailleau – the Republican candidate for the 2027 French presidential election -believes that “France has lost an exceptional woman.” The president of the Republicans continued: “Bernadette Chirac embodied, with rare dignity, a sense of duty, love of France, and loyalty to her family. She was much more than a First Lady; she was a woman of character, rooted in her convictions and close to the French people.”
Femme aux engagements nombreux, cheville ouvrière de l’opération « Pièces jaunes » en faveur des enfants hospitalisés, Bernardette Chirac aura marqué la vie publique française, aux côtés de son époux le président Jacques Chirac.
Le département de la Corrèze et la France entière…
— Jordan Bardella (@J_Bardella) June 6, 2026
“A woman with numerous commitments, linchpin of the “Pièces jaunes” operation in support of hospitalized children, Bernadette Chirac will have left her mark on French public life, alongside her husband President Jacques Chirac” wrires Jordan Bardella, the president of the National Rally (RN).
“The department of Corrèze and all of France lose today a familiar figure: I extend my heartfelt thoughts to the family and loved ones of Bernadette Chirac”.
