Sébastien Lecornu was born on 11 June 1986.

The son of a medical secretary and an aviation industry technician, Mr. Lecornu studied law at the Université Paris 2 Panthéon Assas.

From 2008 to 2012, he was adviser to Bruno Le Maire, Secretary of State for European Affairs and later Minister of Agriculture.

In 2014, he was elected Mayor of Vernon and, in 2015, President of the Eure Departmental Council. He was re-elected in the municipal elections in March 2020, becoming departmental councillor in June 2021, and again President of the Eure Departmental Council in July 2021. He was also elected senator in September 2020 but has decided not to sit in the Upper Chamber in compliance with the law banning the holding of multiple public offices, so as to continue exercising his ministerial functions.

Sébastien Lecornu was appointed Secretary of State attached to the Minister of State for the Ecological and Inclusive Transition on 21 June 2017 in the government of Édouard Philippe.

In 2018, he was appointed Minister of Local Authorities and co-chaired the “Great National Debate” organized at the initiative of the President of the Republic in early 2019 in response to the social crisis of autumn 2018.

In July 2020, he was appointed Minister of Overseas France in the government of Jean Castex. In this capacity, he oversaw management of the 12 French overseas territories, spread across the three major oceans. He also participated in the final step of the Noumea Accord by organising the last two referendums on full independence for New Caledonia. 

On 20 May 2022, he became Minister of the Armed Forces in the government of Elisabeth Borne.

Sébastien Lecornu also holds the rank of reserve colonel in the National Gendarmerie.

He is Officer of the Order of Agricultural Merit and Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters, in recognition of his services as chairman of the Giverny Impressionist Museum, holder of a gold medal for his services to Overseas France, Grand Officer of the Lebanese National Order of the Cedar and Commander of the Ordre de l’Etoile de Mohéli.