After the July Revolution in 1830 he sold his practice and became Secretary General of the prefecture of Bouches-du-Rhône.

He aligned himself with the policy of Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte, and was appointed Prefect of the Nord department in December 1848.

He performed his duties with zeal, and on 24 January 1851 was appointed Minister of the Interior in the Petit ministère of 1851, holding office until 10 April 1851.

Vaïsse supported the coup d'état of 2 December 1851 in which Napoleon seized power.

[1] A memorial pays tribute to him in the Parc de la Tête d'Or (on the Belvedere, near the velodrome) and a small street named after him in the 6th arrondissement of Lyon, between the Avenue Foch and the Place d'Helvétie.