french politics

October 12, 2025 3:54 PM

French PM Lecornu races against the clock to form government

French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu faces a race against time to form a government by Monday’s budget deadline, as divisions emerged within the conservative Les Republicains party over whether to accept ministerial posts in his cabinet. Just two days after being reappointed, Lecornu must present a draft budget bill to cabinet and parliament on Monday, requiring key ministerial positions to be filled immediately amid France’s deepest political crisis in decades. The LR party’s governi...

October 7, 2025 4:15 PM

Election calls heap pressure on Macron to end political crisis

France's President Emmanuel Macron faced deepening pressure on Tuesday to hold a snap parliamentary election or even resign to end political chaos in the euro zone's second biggest economy that has forced the resignation of five prime ministers in less than two years. The 47-year-old president, who was seen this week wandering alone beside the river Seine deep in thought, has repeatedly said he will see out his second term, which ends in 2027. But resignation calls, long confined to the fringe...

September 8, 2025 3:58 PM

France faces more turmoil with government on brink of collapse ahead of confidence vote

France's fourth prime minister in less than two years, François Bayrou, faces defeat in a confidence vote on Monday, tipping the euro zone's second-biggest economy further into political and economic paralysis. The minority government's expected collapse looks set to deepen France's problems at a critical time for Europe, which is seeking unity in the face of Russia's war against Ukraine, an increasingly dominant China and trade tensions with the United States. The turmoil also threatens Fran...

August 26, 2025 3:28 PM

French minister won’t rule out snap election after PM Bayrou’s confidence-vote gamble

France could find itself heading for another snap parliamentary election, a government minister suggested on Tuesday, after opposition parties said they would vote to oust Prime Minister Francois Bayrou, coinciding with a decline in French markets. Bayrou jolted the political establishment out of its summer slumber on Monday with his unexpected move to seek a September 8 confidence vote on his debt-cutting plan. The country's main opposition parties were quick to make it clear that they w...