Emmanuel Macron was under mounting pressure last night to address the French public amid concerns that a political stalemate would make the nation ungovernable.
President Macron has yet to comment publicly after staving off an expected far-right surge in Sunday’s National Assembly election, although there was no overall winner.
Their silence comes despite fears that a hung parliament with little ideological overlap could lead to uncertainty.
The leftist New Popular Front unexpectedly won 188 seats, 27 ahead of Macron’s centrists, with Marine Le Pen’s National Rally (RN) further behind in third, after moderate candidates agreed to stay away from each other so as not to split the anti-nationalist vote.
Frederic-Pierre Vos, a former RN lawyer elected in northern Paris, said a hung parliament would mean an “ungovernable France”, providing new opportunities for RN in 2027 when Macron is due to step down.
Emmanuel Macron is under increasing pressure to address the French public amid concerns that a political stalemate will make the nation ungovernable.
Far-right National Rally leader Marine Le Pen’s hopes of forming a government have been dashed after a last-minute left-wing alliance.
Bruno Le Maire, France’s economy minister, warned of a “crisis of the regime.” “The forces of the National Assembly are scattered. Their ideas are even more so. We have a pressing need for coherence and lucidity… let’s get back to reality,” he said.
Macron’s only intervention since exit polls indicated Le Pen’s defeat was to reject his prime minister’s resignation.
Gabriel Attal, 35, offered to resign just six months after his appointment, following a disappointing night at the polls. But the Elysee said the youngest prime minister in French history would remain in office “for the time being”.
Prime Minister Gabriel Attal (pictured) has resigned, but Macron has asked his protégé to carry on as the country battles the crisis.
Any new government will find it difficult to pass laws and make tough spending decisions to prevent the country’s debts from spiraling out of control.
The president, however, faces the prospect of trying to form alliances, a task made virtually impossible by his hostility to both Le Pen and the leftist Jean-Luc Melenchon, who masterminded the rise of the New Popular Front.
Gerald Darmanin, who served as interior minister under Attal, said it was “out of the question to govern or support a coalition” that had a link to RN or the left-wing bloc.
A NATO summit begins today in Washington and millions of visitors are expected to flock to Paris for the Olympic Games later this month.
And although the dejected RN suffered a disappointing result, it managed to increase its share of the vote, despite accusing the establishment of thwarting its power grab through coordinated voting efforts.
French airport workers are to go on strike next week, nine days before the start of the Olympic Games in Paris. Unions are demanding that all staff receive a bonus because the Games are being held during the summer holidays.
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