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French lawmakers voted against the government in a no-confidence vote on Monday, plunging Europe’s second-largest economy into renewed political turmoil and forcing President Emmanuel Macron to seek his fourth prime minister in just over a year. Prime Minister François Bayrou was ousted with a 364–194 margin, despite being appointed by Macron in December of the previous year. Bayrou had based his survival on a budget plan that required significant spending cuts to reduce debt. However, opposition lawmakers from across the political spectrum seized the opportunity to unite against him, leading to his removal.
By law, Bayrou’s minority government must now tender its resignation after less than nine months in office. The collapse of the government adds uncertainty and increases the risk of prolonged gridlock at a time when France faces significant fiscal challenges and global instability, including wars in Ukraine and Gaza, as well as shifting U.S. foreign policy under President Donald Trump.
Macron had two weeks to prepare for this situation after Bayrou announced his intention to seek a confidence vote. Despite this preparation period, no consensus successor has emerged yet. Macron previously appointed Gabriel Attal, who left office in September 2024, and Michel Barnier, who was ousted in December. The search for a fourth leader highlights Macron’s struggle to build parliamentary support in a chamber dominated by opponents.
Macron retains significant influence over foreign policy, European affairs, and the military as commander-in-chief of France’s nuclear arsenal. However, his domestic ambitions are increasingly hindered. The roots of the crisis trace back to June 2024, when Macron dissolved the National Assembly and called elections, hoping to strengthen his centrist alliance. Instead, the gamble backfired, producing a fragmented legislature with no dominant bloc for the first time in France’s modern republic.
Stripped of a reliable majority, Macron’s governments have faced one confrontation after another. Opposition forces on the left and far right have repeatedly united to bring down his choices, leaving Macron struggling to maintain stability at home even as he projects French influence abroad.
In his final speech as prime minister to the National Assembly, Bayrou acknowledged that his leadership was a high-risk gamble but argued that France’s mounting debt crisis required legislative backing for corrective measures. He warned of “a silent, underground, invisible, and unbearable hemorrhage” of unchecked borrowing.
By the end of the first quarter of 2025, France’s public debt had risen to €3.346 trillion, equivalent to 114% of gross domestic product. Servicing this debt remains one of the state’s largest expenses, consuming roughly 7% of government spending.
The National Assembly convened an extraordinary session marked by high political drama after cutting its summer recess short. Macron’s opponents seized on the turmoil to press for a fresh legislative election, demand his resignation, or maneuver for influence in a potential new government.
Far-right leader Marine Le Pen urged Macron to dissolve the Assembly again, confident that her National Rally party and allies could capture a majority in snap elections and take control of the government. From the Assembly floor, she declared: “France is a great nation and cannot function with a paper government, especially in such a tormented and dangerous world.”
This article includes reporting by the Associated Press.
