On the basis of a prosopography of French ministers between 1986 and 2012, this article investigates the social rationales at work in the constitution of French cabinets: social specificities mentioned by the media (parity, 'diversity', generational change), but also less often mentioned social specificities (social and political trajectories). French ministers hold the most legitimate educational, social and political resources. The importance of political and electoral resources underlines the autonomization and the relative closure of the political field. A qualitative analysis on some ministers clarifies the limitations of change in the ruling political class: ministers often heralded as symbols of a newly opened political recruitment are in fact experienced professionals of politics.