France’s deepening political turmoil took a dramatic turn on Monday after Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu tendered his resignation less than a month into the job — a move that left the Élysée scrambling to prevent a full-blown governance collapse.
President Emmanuel Macron, in a bid to avert political paralysis, refused to accept the resignation outright. Instead, he gave Lecornu a 48-hour deadline to present a credible plan to restore stability and rebuild a workable coalition. The decision followed an evening crisis meeting between the two men at the Élysée Palace, after which Macron’s office confirmed that the premier had been asked to hold “final consultations with political forces” and report back by Wednesday night.
Lecornu, who had unveiled his new cabinet barely 14 hours before resigning, said on X (formerly Twitter) that he would continue engaging party leaders “for the stability of the Republic.”
The crisis erupted after widespread backlash over his cabinet appointments, particularly the controversial decision to name Bruno Le Maire, Macron’s former finance chief, as Defence Minister. The right-wing Les Républicains (LR) party — which Lecornu had hoped to win over — condemned the appointment, viewing Le Maire as a symbol of Macron’s unpopular economic liberalism.
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In a gesture aimed at calming tempers, Le Maire announced his resignation on X, saying he would “step aside for the sake of national cohesion.” But the damage was already done.
Even within Macron’s centrist bloc, frustration has grown. Gabriel Attal, himself a former prime minister and now head of Macron’s Renaissance Party, told France’s evening news that the president’s strategy had become “difficult to follow.” He noted that Macron had appointed three prime ministers in a single year, adding, “Perhaps it’s time to try something different.”
The uncertainty has rattled financial markets — the CAC 40 index in Paris slipped by 1.4 percent after Lecornu’s resignation — and renewed fears of a political impasse reminiscent of France’s post-war paralysis.
Analysts say Macron’s authority is visibly waning as he struggles to command a fragmented hung parliament left over from the snap legislative elections of mid-2024.
Meanwhile, far-right leader Marine Le Pen seized the moment, calling Macron’s government “exhausted” and urging him to “let the French people decide” through new elections. Her protégé, Jordan Bardella, leader of the National Rally (RN), declared that his party was “ready to govern.”
The crisis now places Macron at a crossroads — either broker a last-minute truce with rival blocs or risk plunging France into snap polls that could hand the far right its strongest opening in modern French history.