New première dame vows she won’t be a trophy wife

Humble beginnings and a good work ethic will help the new first lady hold her own in French circles, writes Elaine Ganley

ONLY in France. Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, superstar model turned songstress with a freewheeling lifestyle, hands the job of first lady to a twice-divorced journalist who’s the first presidential partner to enter the Élysée Palace without a ring on her finger.

And as Valérie Trierweiler prepares for her new role alongside president-elect François Hollande, in the wings is the woman whose man she stole — Ségolène Royal, mother of Hollande’s four children and a former presidential candidate now seeking her own seat of political power.