France is in danger: Prime Minister Lecorny has resigned

On Monday, October 6, it became known that French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecorny submitted his resignation. This happened against the background of criticism from opposition parties after the announcement of the updated composition of the government. Lecorny held on to the post for less than a month. Read more about what is happening, as well as what awaits the republic next, in the Izvestia article.

Resignation of French Prime Minister Lecorn: what is known

On October 6, French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecorny sent a voluntary resignation letter to President Emmanuel Macron. This decision was made against the background of criticism from the opposition just a few hours after the announcement of a part of the new government of the country. This was reported by BFMTV with reference to the Elysee Palace.

"The Prime Minister has submitted his resignation [to the French president] Emmanuel Macron, the Elysee Palace announced. The head of state accepted it," the message says.

Lecorny's term as Prime Minister was the shortest in the history of the Fifth Republic - he was in office for less than a month (from September 9). Prior to this, Michel Barnier, who was prime Minister of the country for just over three months (September 5 — December 13, 2024), had an anti-record in terms of length of time.

Since January 2024, France has already had four prime ministers.

Pavel Timofeev, head of the Sector of Regional Problems and Conflicts at the E.M. Primakov IMEMO of the Russian Academy of Sciences, suggested in an interview with Izvestia that Lecorn decided not to bring his resignation to a vote of no confidence. According to the expert, he did this against the background of the fact that he could not reach an agreement with the opposition and form a cabinet that would not be overturned at the very first vote.

Alexandra Zhidkova, a senior researcher at the Institute of Universal History of the Russian Academy of Sciences, adds that it was initially clear that Lecorn would work less than the Bayrou government. The expert attributes this to the difficult political and socio-economic situation in France, as well as pressure from political parties, budget problems, criticism and protests that have engulfed the country. In addition, Alexandra Zhidkova points out the fact that Lecorny is a loyal and consistent macronist.

— The obvious bet here is that Lecornoux should have continued Emmanuel Macron's course in the socio-economic sphere. In other words, it was a clear, understandable message to the entire French political establishment that this was an attempt to continue the course of Macronism, the expert notes.

Thus, according to Alexandra Zhidkova, Lecorny repeats to some extent the fate of previous prime ministers, since the key problems have not been solved, neither in the context of the socio-economic nor the political situation in France.

What awaits France next

Pavel Timofeev sees several scenarios following the resignation of the French Prime Minister. The expert calls the appointment of a new prime minister by Macron one of the most likely. At the same time, he notes, consultations with parliament on the selection of a government will begin anew after taking office.

"Macron's task here is to find a person who would find a common language with the opposition, either with one or the other, or with one of them, so that she would not vote against," the expert believes.

Izvestia's interlocutor calls the dissolution of parliament and the holding of new elections the second possible option. However, according to Pavel Timofeev, this option carries more risks for the Macronists due to the fact that their situation can only worsen.

The third scenario is the resignation of Macron himself, but this is an unlikely course of events, Pavel Timofeev notes. The fourth option is to declare a state of emergency and rule by the president without consulting Parliament. Nevertheless, this is possible only as a last resort, for example, when the territory of France is occupied by the enemy, fighting is underway and the functioning of the state machine is impossible, the Izvestia interlocutor notes.

It is difficult to guess who will become the new Prime Minister of France. Experts interviewed by Izvestia noted that it is necessary to wait for the decision of the French president, which he must make in the near future.

— The main criterion that Macron will use to guide his (Prime Minister's) appointment is that a person can come to an agreement with either the left or the far-right, or both. The task is very difficult. Therefore, I don't know who the choice will be," Pavel Timofeev explains.

According to Elena Karaeva, a political commentator at Rossiya Segodnya news agency, Macron has two options: he chooses between the bad and the disgusting.

— The second is the resignation of Macron himself, which is unlikely, as it will plunge the country into even greater political chaos. Whoever the French president is, he is unlikely to want to leave such a legacy behind. A bad option is the dissolution of the National Assembly, which, I believe, will be announced in the coming days," the expert points out.

New French government: vote of no confidence

A few hours before his resignation, Lecornu announced part of the new French government. Many key ministers retained their positions. Former Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire was appointed the new Minister of the Armed Forces to replace Lecorny (he held the post in 2022-2025).

In this context, Alexandra Zhidkova notes that the new Lecorny government has turned out to be even more Macronistic than the previous ones.

— This, of course, caused criticism and irritation. They said that there is no break with Macronism, that this is a provocation and a denial of democracy," the expert adds.

The appointment of a new government, especially Le Maire, has caused particular discontent among both left-wing and right-wing opposition parties. They began to express their disagreement with the retention of many ministers in their previous posts and even began to promise a vote of no confidence in Prime Minister Lecorn. In particular, the opposition leaders felt that with such a cabinet, Prime Minister Sebastien Lecorny could not fulfill his promise to make a "break" with the policies of Emmanuel Macron.

In response to the announcement of the new cabinet of Ministers, Jean-Luc Melenchon, founder of the left-wing Insubordinate France party, wrote on the social network X: "The countdown to their expulsion has begun."

Socialist leader Olivier Faure also threatened a vote of no confidence: "Now, as we speak, I don't see what could make us not vote for a vote of no confidence."