Last Friday, the tabloid Closer published photographs it claimed were of Hollande and his bodyguards, entering and exiting the apartment building of French actress Julie Gayet. Neither Hollande nor Gayet has denied having a relationship but Hollande has said that he is contemplating filing a lawsuit against the tabloid for invasion of his privacy.
Hollande has never been married, but prior to his meeting Trierweiler, he had a nearly 30-year relationship with former presidential candidate Segolene Royal, with whom he has four children.
Trierweiler began dating Hollande while he was campaigning for Royal's presidential bid in 2007. Their relationship went public when Hollande and Royal separated after her near loss in the elections.
When Hollande was elected to president in 2012, it was Trierweiler who has been by his side throughout the campaign and his administration. However, over the last several months, rumors spread that Hollande was growing tired of Trierweiler and had recently begun a relationship with another woman.
While not well known outside of France, Gayet has found success in the French film industry, appearing in over 20 movies and winning the award for best actress at the Tokyo International Film Festival in 2009. Gayet had previously appeared in a Hollande video during the presidential campaign.
Trierweiler's spokesman, Patrice Biancone, confirmed that she has been admitted to a hospital after suffering a big emotional shock that occurred when she learned from the tabloid story of the rumored relationship between Hollande and Gayet. While the exact hospital has not been revealed, Biancone did say that Trierweiler is set to be released on Monday. Biancone went on to say that after some rest, Trierweiler will decide what to do next.
While surveys of the French public consistently find that they have no interest in the private lives of their leaders, some say this story, if true, though no threat to Hollande's already historically low popularity, will affect his ability to focus the public and government on the agenda he wants to accomplish in this new year.