Macron Renominates Lecornu as France's Premier After Several Days of Unrest

President Emmanuel Macron has requested Sébastien Lecornu to come back as French prime minister only four days after he resigned, sparking a week of intense uncertainty and political turmoil.

The president declared late on Friday, following gathering all the main parties in one place at the presidential palace, omitting the leaders of the political extremes.

His reappointment shocked many, as he stated on television only two days ago that he was not “chasing the job” and his “mission is over”.

There is uncertainty whether he will be able to form a government, but he will have to start immediately. Lecornu faces a time limit on the start of the week to present the annual budget before parliament.

Leadership Hurdles and Budgetary Strains

The Élysée said the president had “tasked [Lecornu] with forming a government”, and his advisors indicated he had been given “carte blanche” to make decisions.

Lecornu, who is one of the president's key supporters, then issued a comprehensive announcement on X in which he consented to as an obligation the assignment entrusted to me by the president, to strive to provide France with a budget by the end of the year and respond to the common issues of our countrymen.

Political divisions over how to bring down government borrowing and cut the budget deficit have caused the fall of multiple premiers in the recent period, so his mission is enormous.

Government liabilities recently was almost 114% of national income – the third highest in the currency union – and the annual fiscal gap is estimated to reach 5.4 percent of economic output.

Lecornu emphasized that everyone must contribute the imperative of repairing government accounts. Given the limited time before the end of Macron's presidency, he cautioned that prospective ministers would have to set aside their presidential ambitions.

Governing Without a Majority

Compounding the challenge for the prime minister is that he will face a vote of confidence in a National Assembly where the president has no majority to back him. Macron's approval plummeted recently, according to a survey that put his support level on just 14%.

The far-right leader of the National Rally party, which was not invited of the president's discussions with party leaders on Friday, remarked that Lecornu's reappointment, by a president out of touch at the Élysée, is a “bad joke”.

The National Rally would promptly introduce a motion of censure against a failing government, whose main motivation was dreading polls, the leader stated.

Seeking Support

The prime minister at least is aware of the challenges he faces as he tries to establish a cabinet, because he has already devoted 48 hours lately talking to factions that might support him.

Alone, the moderate factions are insufficient, and there are divisions within the right-leaning party who have supported Macron's governments since he lost his majority in recent polls.

So Lecornu will seek socialist factions for future alliances.

To gain leftist support, Macron's team indicated the president was thinking of postponing to part of his controversial social security adjustments enacted last year which raised the retirement age from 62 up to 64.

It was insufficient of what socialist figures hoped for, as they were hoping he would choose a premier from their side. The Socialist leader of the Socialists commented “since we've not been given any guarantees, we won't give any guarantee” in a vote of confidence.

Fabien Roussel from the Communists commented post-consultation that the progressive camp wanted real change, and a premier from the moderate faction would not be accepted by the public.

Greens leader Marine Tondelier remarked she was surprised the president had provided few concessions to the progressives, adding that the situation would deteriorate.