Lecornu resigns, leaving France without a government again the day after his announcement.

ParisSébastien Lecornu will go down in history as the prime minister who served the fewest days in office, just 27. Lecornu, a figure very close to President Macron, unexpectedly resigned this Monday morning, less than 24 hours after announcing the names of the new government's ministers. The appointment this Sunday of a continuist executive, made up of almost the same ministers as the previous one—rejected by the National Assembly in September—has drawn criticism from opposition groups, who have threatened a vote of no confidence.

"The conditions are not met" for governing, Lecornu justified his resignation in a brief speech explaining his resignation. Lecornu accused some political parties of acting in their own interests in the face of the approaching presidential elections, which will be held in 2027, instead of trying to build bridges. "We must always prefer the country to the party. We must know how to listen to our members, but we must always think of the French people," he said.

The new government's key ministers were the same as the previous administration, including Education Minister and former Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne; Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin; Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau; and even Culture Minister Rachida Dati, who is awaiting trial for corruption.

Discomfort among Macron's allies

Lecornu's decision was also motivated by the threat from the right-wing Republican Party, Macron's government ally until now, to stop supporting the government. The leader of the conservative party and Minister of the Interior has criticized the low presence of members of his party in the government and the fact that Lecornu appointed Bruno Le Maire, a Macronist and Minister of the Economy for more than seven years, as Minister of Defense. The Republicans point to him as guilty of the complicated situation of the country's finances.

"The composition of the government does not reflect the promised break," Retailleau asserted Sunday evening, annoyed at having learned of Le Maire's presence in the government at the very moment the composition of the new executive was made public. The Conservative leader had called a party meeting for Monday to decide whether or not to continue supporting the executive.

Five prime ministers

Before the motion of censure or the withdrawal of the Republicans from the government materializes, the Prime Minister has decided to throw in the towel and tender his resignation to Emmanuel Macron, who has accepted. Since the beginning of President Macron's second term, France has had five prime ministers. The next one will be the sixth. Lecornu has broken all the brevity records of the Fifth Republic..

The resignation of Sébastien Lecornu further deepens the political crisis in France, marked by instability. "This ephemeral government only illustrates one thing: Macronism is plunging the country, once again, into chaos," warned Socialist spokesman Arthur Delaporte.

For the Élysée Palace tenant, the pressure to call early legislative elections is at its maximum. "I call for the dissolution of the National Assembly. We are at the end of the road, tomorrow there will be nothing [...]. The joke has already reached its limit, the farce has gone on long enough," warned far-right leader Marine Le Pen (National Rally).

The radical left and Les Républicains are going even further and demanding the president's resignation. "The countdown has begun. Macron must go," Mathilde Panot, parliamentary spokesperson for La France Insoumise, told X.