"Emmanuel Macron has become a lame duck – a president who, while still in office, has lost the ability to push his policies," wrote the British newspaper The Times. According to The Times, Macron has only three options after the recent events: appoint a new prime minister, dissolve parliament, or resign himself.

The political crisis in Paris deepened after Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu resigned just 27 days after taking office – the shortest term in the history of the Fifth Republic. His resignation followed a wave of criticism regarding the composition of the cabinet, in which 13 out of 18 ministers were from the previous government. The appointment of former Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire as Minister of Defense was particularly controversial; he is accused by many of being responsible for France's economic problems.

According to Reuters, after Lecornu's departure, Macron tasked the outgoing prime minister with continuing discussions with political parties for another 48 hours in an attempt to find a "'minimum platform for stability'". The Élysée Palace is thus trying to postpone the need for early elections, which could further weaken the president's position.

The opposition is calling for the dissolution of parliament

"We have reached the end of the road," declared the leader of the National Rally, Marine Le Pen, in an interview with BFMTV. "The only sensible decision is to open the ballot boxes again." The same view is shared by the president of RN, Jordan Bardella, who believes that "'restoring stability without dissolving the National Assembly is impossible.'"

Le Pen and other opposition leaders argue that Macron has lost legitimacy and is a "'president without a parliament'" – a significantly weakened leader in the midst of unpopular economic reforms, rising inflation, and tensions surrounding immigration policy.

Macron's power is crumbling

"Macron has nowhere left to retreat," summarizes The Guardian. After the unsuccessful governments of Michel Barnier and François Bayrou, this is the third cabinet collapse in a single year. Each of the prime ministers has tried to build a majority in the fragmented parliament that emerged after the 2024 elections, but without success.

Financial markets reacted immediately: the Paris CAC 40 index fell by two percent, and the euro weakened against the dollar.

The political background of the crisis

The current situation has its roots in the electoral deadlock of 2024, when Macron's centrist coalition lost its majority and had to rely on unstable agreements. Since then, the Élysée Palace has been plagued by a revolving door of prime ministers and unsuccessful attempts at compromise.

As a commentator for The Times put it: "Macron's problem is not a lack of energy, but that he is running alone – and no one wants to keep up with him anymore."

gnews.cz - GH