French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu Resigns After Less Than a 30-Day Period in Office
The nation's PM Sébastien Lecornu has resigned, under 24 hours after his ministers was announced.
The French presidency issued a statement after the Prime Minister met the French President for an hour on Monday morning.
This unexpected development comes only 26 days after Lecornu was given the PM role following the downfall of the previous government of François Bayrou.
Political factions in the National Assembly had sharply condemned the makeup of Lecornu's cabinet, which was mostly similar to Bayrou's, and promised to block its approval.
Calls for Snap Polls and Political Unrest
A number of factions are now clamouring for new parliamentary polls, with certain voices demanding Macron to step down as well - even though he has consistently affirmed he will not stand down before his time in office finishes in five years from now.
"The President needs to choose: dissolution of parliament or stepping down," said Sébastien Chenu, one of prominent members of the National Rally.
The outgoing PM - the ex-defense chief and a supporter of Macron - was France's fifth prime minister in a two-year span.
Background of Government Crisis
France's political landscape has been highly unstable since mid-2024, when snap parliamentary elections resulted in a hung parliament.
This has created challenges for each PM to secure enough backing to pass any bills.
The previous administration was voted down in September after parliament voted against his austerity budget, which aimed to slash government spending by 44 billion euros.
Economic Pressures and Market Response
France's deficit hit nearly 6% of the economy in the current year and its public debt is 114 percent of GDP.
That is the third highest public debt in the eurozone after Italy and Greece, and equal to almost 50,000 euros per person.
Markets declined in the Paris bourse after the news of Lecornu's resignation broke on Monday.
