Inter-war Period
In 1919 Mandel was elected to the Chamber of Deputies from Gironde. He, in September that year, was delegated to try to draw the government out of its noncommittal attitude towards the bastardized system of proportional representation passed by both houses of parliament earlier in the year. He lost his seat when the Cartel des Gauches swept the 1924 elections, but was returned to office in 1928. By 1932, he had become the Chairman of the Chamber's universal suffrage committee. Its actions led to passage of legislation enfranchising women, although the proposal was an anathema to the Senate.
In 1934, Mandel was appointed as Minister of Posts (1934–1936) and oversaw the first official television transmission in French. During the 1936 Albert Sarraut government, Mandel served as both Minister of Posts and High Commissioner for Alsace and Lorraine. After the fall of the Popular Front government, he served from 1938 as Minister of Overseas France and her Colonies until 18 May 1940, when Premier Paul Reynaud appointed him, briefly, as Minister of the Interior.
Read more about this topic: Georges Mandel
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