The French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte Macron sued right-wing podcaster Candace Owens with a a 22-count defamation in the United States on Wednesday. The defamation lawsuit was filed over the claim that the French first lady could be a man.
The Macrons’ attorney, Tom Clare said in a statement that Owens has broadcast “a relentless year-long campaign of defamation against the Macrons” the lawsuit for which was filed in the Delaware Superior Court.
American commentator Owens revived a conspiracy theory in March with a YouTube video titled “Is France’s First Lady a Man?” the lawsuit stated.
Owens claimed that the conspiracy theory was “probably the biggest scandal in political history” and that it was extensively promoted on X.
For her over 4.5 million YouTube subscribers, Owens has since created several videos about Brigitte, including a multi-part series titled “Becoming Brigitte.”
Additionally, the lawsuit alleges that she has sold merchandise that promotes the claim.
The defamation lawsuit was filed as a “last resort” after Owens refused to stop making the claim for approximately a year, Clare said. He told CNN on Wednesday that they had requested her to stop making the claim.
According to the complaint, Owens was the first to present these unfounded allegations to the American media and a global audience. The Macrons’ claim to have suffered “substantial economic damages,” including lost potential business opportunities, and is suing for punitive damages.
Owens shared a photograph of the French president and his wife and a screenshot of a story about the Macrons’ lawsuit on social media on Wednesday, writing, “I will be coming for this wig today. Stay tuned.”
The podcaster alleged in a YouTube video later that lawsuit was “an obvious and desperate public relations strategy.”
Owens has been contacted by CNN for comment.
In 2022, Brigitte filed a separate lawsuit against two French women for disseminating similar claims. According to CNN affiliate BFMTV, the women won an appeal this year after winning the first case, and the case will now proceed to a higher court.
“Incontrovertible evidence disproving her allegations and proving, among other things, that Mrs. Macron was born a woman named Brigitte Trogneux, that she is not a blood relative of President Macron,” the statement said, accompanied by demands for retraction to Owens. It also claimed that the Macrons are not being blackmailed or controlled by unidentified forces through a program connected to the CIA.
“Owens has used this false statement to promote her independent platform, gain notoriety, and make money,” the official complaint read.
The claims caused, “tremendous damage” to the Macrons, the complaint added.
“Every time the Macrons leave their home, they do so knowing that countless people have heard, and many believe, these vile fabrications. It is invasive, dehumanizing, and deeply unjust,” the complaint continued.
“What people forget is these are human beings, these are a married couple. They have a social life, they have a private life together, they have the same feelings and the same hurt from these sorts of defamatory statements as anybody would. And it does have a material impact on them,” Macrons’ attorney said.
The statement added that the Macrons are suing Owens and her business for 22 counts of defamation, false light, and defamation by implication to seek punitive damages.
Clare declined to specify how much money the Macrons would seek but warned that “it’ll be a substantial award” if Owens keeps stepping up her claims.
Macron addressed the rumours about his wife during a March 2024 event in Paris, stating that dealing with “the false information and fabricated stories” was the worst aspect of being president.
“People end up believing them, and it disrupts your life, even in your most private moments,” the president added.
France’s Elysee Palace declined to comment on the lawsuit saying that it was “private affair”.