Thomas Portes

Thomas Portes (born 18 November 1985) is a French politician of La France Insoumise who has been representing Seine-Saint-Denis's 3rd constituency in the National Assembly since 2022.^[1] In the 2022 French legislative election he unseated En Marche! MP Patrice Anato.^[2]

Thomas Portes
Thomas Portes in 2018
Member of the National Assembly for Seine-Saint-Denis's 3rd constituency
Incumbent
Assumed office 22 June 2022
Preceded by	Patrice Anato
Personal details
Born	(1985-11-18) 18 November 1985 (age 39) Carmaux, Tarn, France
Political party	La France Insoumise (since 2021)
Other political affiliations	NUPES (2022) NFP (2024) Génération.s (2021) PCF (2014–2020)
Alma mater	University of Bordeaux

In February 2023, Portes created controversy when he posted a photo on Twitter of himself stepping with his foot placed atop a balloon bearing the image of the Minister of Labor Olivier Dussopt, of whom he was critical.^[3] In response, and after he failed to remove the image from Twitter as requested, he was suspended for two weeks from the lower house.^[3]

Portes again sparked controversy when he declared at a rally that Israelis athletes were not welcome at the 2024 Paris Olympics. The remarks were condemned by the Representative Council of French Jewish Institutions. French Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin said the remarks obviously hinted at antisemitism, and Mayor of Nice, France Christian Estrosi called for the dissolution of the LFI.^[4][5] Karen Taieb, a deputy mayor of Paris, said Portes was "a danger and a disgrace" who was "advocating hatred," Socialist MP Jérôme Guedj posted on X: “Of course Israeli athletes are welcome...,” and French foreign minister Stéphane Séjourné said at a meeting with EU foreign ministers: "I want to say on behalf of France, to the Israeli delegation, we welcome you to France for these Olympic Games."^[6]

See also

• List of deputies of the 16th National Assembly of France

References

1. nationale, Assemblée. "M. Thomas Portes - Mandat clos - Seine-Saint-Denis (3e circonscription)" (in French). National Assembly. Retrieved 28 June 2024.
2. à 05h00, Par Sébastien Thomas Le 20 juin 2022 (20 June 2022). "Législatives en Seine-Saint-Denis : Thomas Portes (Nupes) confirme face à Patrice Anato (LREM), dans la 3e circonscription". leparisien.fr (in French). Retrieved 28 June 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
3. "LFI deputy Thomas Portes excluded from the Assembly for 15 days after the controversial photo," Le Parisien.
4. "Outrage after French lawmaker says Israeli athletes not welcome at Paris Olympics". Times of Israel. 22 July 2024. Retrieved 22 July 2024.
5. "Christian Estrosi calls for the dissolution of LFI following Thomas Portes' comments on Israeli athletes". Entrevue. 21 July 2024. Retrieved 22 July 2024.
6. "France Unbowed MP sparks outrage by saying Israeli Olympians not welcome; Thomas Portes accused of ‘putting a target on the backs of Israeli athletes’ with remarks at protest against Gaza war," The Guardian.