Newly appointed French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu announced his cabinet members only to resign a few hours later on Monday, October 6. The Élysée Palace confirmed that French President Emmanuel Macron has accepted the resignation, a dramatic turn of events that shocked the political arena and deepened the political crisis in France once again.
Lecornu’s cabinet list was made public on Sunday night, but he submitted his resignation to Macron on Monday morning, making his government’s tenure less than 12 hours, one of the shortest in French history.
Following the news, the financial markets immediately reacted. France’s main stock index CAC 40 and the Euro saw significant declines in early trading on Monday, with the CAC 40 index dropping by over 2%, highlighting the direct impact of the political turmoil on the economy.
The rapid collapse of Lecornu’s government was primarily due to a lack of support for the new cabinet lineup, facing unanimous criticism from across the political spectrum, questioning the government’s sustainability, and prompting discussions of a vote of no confidence.
Foreign media pointed out that many ministers were either not retained from the previous government or held senior positions, with 11 ministers returning to their former roles.
French right-wing leader Marine Le Pen described the cabinet lineup as “pitiful.” The head of her party, the National Rally, Jordan Bardella, has called for Macron to dissolve the parliament.
The leader of the Socialist Party, Olivier Faure, a major opposition party on the left, explicitly stated that they would vote against the new government. He said, “We are witnessing an unprecedented political crisis.”
The list has even stirred discontent or warnings from some of Macron’s political allies.
Conservative politician Bruno Retailleau, who will continue as Minister of the Interior (responsible for policing and internal security), criticized the government formation as not reflecting the promised paradigm shift.
Lecornu is the fifth Prime Minister appointed by Macron since his reelection in 2022, and his swift resignation has plunged Macron into a severe political deadlock.
Since the 2022 election, the French political landscape has been consistently unstable, mainly due to no single party or alliance holding a majority in parliament. Last year’s early parliamentary elections further fragmented the parliament.
At 39 years old, Lecornu had the daunting task of streamlining the budget and restraining France’s budget deficit. With the current government’s dissolution, this critical fiscal reform may face another setback.