France's Premier Lecornu Resigns After Under a Month in Power
The French Premier Lecornu has stepped down, under 24 hours after his government team was presented.
The Elysée palace made the announcement after Lecornu met the French President for an hour on the start of the week.
This shock move comes only under four weeks after he was named premier following the downfall of the prior administration of François Bayrou.
Political factions in the French parliament had sharply condemned the composition of his ministerial team, which was largely unchanged to Bayrou's, and threatened to vote it down.
Calls for Early Elections and Political Unrest
Multiple political groups are now calling for new parliamentary polls, with certain voices demanding the President to also leave office - despite the fact that he has consistently affirmed he will not leave before his mandate concludes in the year 2027.
"Macron needs to pick: calling new elections or resignation," said Chenu, one of leading figures of the National Rally.
The outgoing PM - the former armed forces minister and a Macron loyalist - was the fifth premier in a two-year span.
Background of Government Turmoil
French politics has been very volatile since last summer, when early legislative polls resulted in a deadlocked assembly.
This has created challenges for every premier to secure enough backing to pass any bills.
Bayrou's government was defeated in last month after lawmakers declined to support his spending cuts plan, which aimed to slash government spending by $51 billion.
Financial Pressures and Stock Response
The nation's budget gap reached nearly 6% of the economy in 2024 and its government debt is 114 percent of GDP.
That is the third highest public debt in the European monetary union after two southern European nations, and amounting to almost 50,000 euros per person.
Markets declined in the French stock market after the resignation report emerged on the start of the week.
