France is once again engulfed in political turmoil after Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu resigned merely 27 days into his tenure, marking the shortest premiership in modern French history.
Lecornu stepped down before outlining his government’s agenda, blaming the entrenched rigidity of rival parties unwilling to compromise. He declared, “Each political party is acting as if they control their own majority,” adding that “the conditions were not fulfilled” for him to continue leading the minority centre-right government.
This crisis stems from President Emmanuel Macron’s decision last year to dissolve parliament amid legislative deadlock, hoping to clarify governance. Instead, elections produced a fractured assembly split between Macron’s centrists, a left-wing alliance, and the far-right National Rally led by Marine Le Pen, with no side commanding a majority.
As a result, Macron’s successive minority governments have been vulnerable to no-confidence votes, leading to repeated collapses.
Lecornu was the third prime minister in less than a year to fail, following Michel Barnier and François Bayrou, each unable to secure parliamentary support for budget reforms that aimed to address France’s significant deficit, projected at 5.8% of GDP in 2024. Opposition parties reject spending cuts and tax rises, exacerbating political divisions and obstructing fiscal stability.
Macron granted Lecornu 48 extra hours to negotiate with other parties but Macron now faces tough choices: appointing a sixth prime minister in two years, risking further instability; calling fresh elections that might empower the far-right; or resigning, which he appears unwilling to do.
Experts suggest Macron might look beyond his centrist allies and consider a compromise prime minister from the centre-left Socialists or the Greens. However, neither the far-left France Unbowed nor the far-right National Rally are viable partners, as both demand Macron’s departure.
Meanwhile, uncertainty looms over the 2026 budget. Economists warn that a prolonged stalemate may force extension of the 2025 budget as a stopgap, maintaining deficits around 5.0%-5.4% of GDP. New coalitions might also reverse some of Macron’s reforms, risking fiscal slippage.