Lthe bistro was almost empty that morning near the Roger-Salengro park in Clichy. Julie Martinez arrived in silence, sunglasses on her nose. He sat down, greeted us with good manners, ordered a long coffee. When he speaks, his fists sometimes hit the table, a light thud to give rhythm to his sentences. At 32, he is coming off a month of what he describes half-heartedly: attacks, insinuations, caricatures… and threats aimed even at his 11-month-old daughter. He didn’t add any more. But everything, in his gestures and self-control, showed his surprise.
The new spokesman for the Socialist Party, now the leader of the list in Clichy for the 2026 municipal elections, has within weeks been thrust into the center of a digital storm. This trained lawyer and GDPR expert has a simple – and nowadays almost rare, ambition: to reconcile the left with technology, and to reconcile himself with the public debate.
“Another World”
If we look back, Julie Martinez never defined herself as a hurricane. He grew up in Sarcelles, in a cocoon that he describes as a place of interior learning: “The smells, the dishes, the music…” Simple riches that are never forgotten. His parents didn’t go to school, but he did: a good student, with excellent grades at baccalaureate level, driven to achieve high goals. He chose preparatory classes at Louis-le-Grand. He then discovers “another world”: expensive summer books, inaccessible boarding schools, permanent social comparisons. “I realized that I was poor. »
He worked in Pimkie to pay for his studies, crossing the ring road from Sarcelles to the Sainte-Geneviève mountain in the heart of Paris every day, like crossing an invisible border. He succeeded, but did not progress: “My enthusiasm gradually became an obstacle. » He then ventured into law, taking three courses, going to Berlin and then to King’s College London on a scholarship. Returning to France, he passed his exams, joined an Anglo-Saxon firm and specialized in data protection. “I liked it, but I didn’t read any more. I don’t go out anymore. It’s all about work. »
Meeting with Jacques Attali
In 2020, one dinner changed everything. A friend – his colleague at the time, Clément Tonon, now a strategist for Édouard Philippe – introduced him to Jacques Attali. Current flows. He joined the think tank he launched: France Positive, where he was general director. He interviewed 400 people, from union members to CAC 40 bosses, to try to project the country 20 or 30 years into the future. A way of thinking about the future that has long-term impacts.
READ ALSO Presidential – Attali’s actions to save FranceA few years later, he joined Palantir, an American company specializing in massive data processing, known for its ties to American intelligence agencies and widely considered controversial. He is responsible for compliance with European laws, internal controls and GDPR. “I’m in charge. The beauty of GDPR is that it applies our regulations to American companies. » He stayed there for three years, until this fall.
Put yourself at the front
His appointment as PS spokesperson this summer immediately attracted attention. Julie Martinez has been an activist with the party since 2017. She works there internally, contributing to program discussions, and, at the beginning of the year, she volunteered to assume national responsibility. The spokesperson is a possibility – an alternative to the local appointments he has been considering. He wasn’t close to any movement, but his technical skills and mastery of digital issues pleased management, which sought to renew its face.
First press portrait released. They are spicy. Many are focused on one thing: Palantir. Its real role – ensuring compliance with European law, dialogue with data protection authorities – disappears behind words that have become a cop-out. “From the outside, this is a difficult position. I understand that this resonates. But the way decisions are made…” He left the sentence hanging.
Then a digital whirlwind emerged. Clichy’s former socialist mayor Gilles Catoire attacked him daily on X, until he was subjected to disciplinary proceedings for cyber harassment. Then came the fantasies, conspiracy theories, and these horrific messages: instigating threats to rape her daughter. He didn’t tell them in detail. He simply stated their names, to see the absurdity.
He thinks to stop everything. “I asked myself: Is this my place? Are they right? » She cried a lot. Then the women – in the party, in her life – supported her: “They told me: “This is unacceptable, but you must not give up.” » He left Palantir on October 13. And continued his journey.
“We must get France out of algorithmic domination”
This November 19, Julie Martinez was nominated by the leading activists of the Socialist Party in Clichy for the 2026 municipal elections. Clichy, where she lives with her partner and their daughter. He spoke about social diversity, early childhood public services, the fight against gentrification, and greening. And the most important thing is technology. “On the left, if we don’t discuss this topic, it will always be the same people who will talk about the future. » He continued: “We took France out of the factories; now, we have to get them out of the domination of algorithms. »
For him, technology can provide hope – but only if regulated. He mentioned the regulation on digital services (DSA), Finland’s media education program, and the need to break the “virality economy” of the platforms. “Democracy cannot function without truth, just as democracy cannot function without the people. »
His obsession, he says, is time: something AI can give, but more importantly something we can give back. “Why do we give up work time? For time for ourselves, for children, for parents, for culture. Not for working more hours. » He talks about a 28-hour week, a universal income that aligns with aspirations, getting city officials back in touch with citizens rather than behind the scenes. “We are tired. We don’t talk to each other anymore. »
When asked who inspired him, he answered: his mother, his grandmother, his philosophy teacher, and all the women who stood by him when he faltered. He knew that politics had become “permanent brutality.” But he wanted to continue. “Because I want my daughter to live in a country where the nuances still exist. »
“I talk a lot, don’t I? » He hints at a smile, as if the storm has finally moved away. His words, long suppressed, now draw a clear line: starting again, but different.
Tomorrow seen by Julie Martinez
Ten years ago, where did you imagine yourself?
Lawyer. I want it, but I’m afraid to accept it.
And in 10 years?
In Clichy… or somewhere else, but still thinking about the future of his country.
How do you see politics in the next 10 years?
Still polarizing. It took more than ten years to achieve our goal.
What makes you optimistic?
My daughter. Children are optimistic by nature.
To find
Kangaroo today
Answer
The sentence that sums up your commitment?
I am indebted to Mitterrand: “Thinking about the future is already part of it. »
