France is facing a deepening constitutional crisis as Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu, who resigned unexpectedly last week only to be reappointed four days later, has formed a new cabinet. The government, seen as subservient to President Emmanuel Macron, is unlikely to survive the National Assembly's scrutiny, with few trusting its ability to address the nation's political paralysis.
The crisis stems from the Fifth Republic's quasi-monarchic presidential system, which has ceased to function effectively. After Macron's snap elections in June 2024 resulted in a hung parliament, he ignored democratic logic by appointing conservative and centrist prime ministers to minority administrations. These governments have failed to resolve the political deadlock, and Lecornu's chances of passing a national budget appear slim.
Calls for Macron's resignation have grown, even from former prime ministers, but he is not obliged to leave office before 2027. Analysts warn that early elections could strengthen the far-right National Rally while still producing another hung parliament. The regime, designed for clear majorities, discourages the coalitions common elsewhere in Europe, suggesting the Fifth Republic may be in its terminal phase.
Macron's 2017 victory is seen as a failure of the political generation of Nicolas Sarkozy and François Hollande, who struggled with globalisation and terrorism. Hollande's term left the republic in doubt, and Macron exploited the resulting vacuum. However, his presidency has now contributed to the very instability he once promised to overcome.
