A member of the Socialist Party, he previously served as the member of the National Assembly for Saône-et-Loire's 6th constituency from 1997 to 2012. Montebourg was also President of the General Council of Saône-et-Loire from 2008 until 2012. He was a candidate in the Socialist presidential primary of 2011. On 21 August 2016, Montebourg announced that he intended to seek again the party's nomination for the 2017 presidential election. In the first round of the primary, held on 22 January, Montebourg was eliminated, once again coming in third place, with Benoît Hamon and Manuel Valls progressing to the runoff; Montebourg pledged his support for Hamon shortly thereafter. He has since then founded a beekeeping business, Bleu Blanc Ruche, producing honey in France.