Emmanuel Macron with his wife (Wikimedia Commons)
French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte Macron are caught in a strange controversy. The couple is preparing to fight what their lawyer calls a “bizarre gender conspiracy,” after claims resurfaced that France’s First Lady is a transgender woman.
Their lawyer, Tom Clare, said that President Macron will present “photographic and scientific evidence” in a US court to prove the falsehood of the allegations. He explained that the President will even show pictures of Brigitte Macron pregnant and raising her children as part of the evidence.
“These folks are important on the world stage, but they’re also human beings. It is offensive and hurtful to be accused of lying about their identities,” Clare said in a BBC podcast.
The conspiracy theory began in 2017 when French blogger Natacha Rey claimed in a YouTube video that Brigitte Macron was in fact her brother, Jean-Michel Trogneux, who had allegedly transitioned. The story resurfaced before the 2022 French Presidential election after Rey repeated the claim in an interview with spiritual medium Amandine Roy.
The Macrons sued both Rey and Roy for defamation, and they were found guilty in 2024. However, the Paris Court of Appeal overturned the ruling in July 2025, stating the allegations were made in “good faith.”
The controversy grew louder when US far-right influencer Candace Owens repeated the claims in 2024. She told her 4 million YouTube subscribers that France’s First Lady is “a man,” and even declared she would risk her professional reputation on the allegation. In July this year, the Macrons sued Owens for defamation after what their lawyer described as a year of failed attempts to convince her to retract her statements. Owens dismissed the lawsuit, calling it “a desperate PR strategy.”
Emmanuel Macron first met Brigitte when he was her student in high school. At that time, she was a married mother of three. The two later married in 2007.
Shivam Verma is a journalist with over three years of experience in digital newsrooms. He currently works at NewsX, having previously worked for Firstpost and DNA India. A postgraduate diploma holder in Integrated Journalism from the Asian College of Journalism, Chennai, Shivam focuses on international affairs, diplomacy, defence, and politics. Beyond the newsroom, he is passionate about football—both playing and watching—and enjoys travelling to explore new places and cuisines.
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