France’s parliament has ousted the government of Prime Minister Francois Bayrou after just “nine months in office,” leaving President Emmanuel Macron to find a successor and creating a new political crisis.
Bayrou, the first premier in the history of modern France to be ousted this way, had called a “confidence vote” to end a dispute over his austerity budget, which planned for “almost 44 billion euros ($52 billion) of cost savings.”
In the vote, “364 deputies” voted “no confidence” while only “194” gave it their “confidence.” The speaker, Yael Braun-Pivet, said, “In line with article 50 of the constitution, the prime minister must submit the resignation of his government.”
Defending his decision, Bayrou told the National Assembly that “The biggest risk was not to take one, to let things continue without anything changing… and have business as usual.”
He described France’s debt as “life-threatening” and said his government had a plan to “in a few years’ time escape the inexorable tide of debt that is submerging it.”
He also told the MPs that they had the power to overthrow the government but not “to erase reality.”
Macron now faces the decision of either appointing a seventh prime minister or calling for “snap elections,” with no guarantee of a better outcome for his “centre-right bloc.” According to an Ifop poll, Macron’s approval rating is at a “worst-ever” of “77 percent” disapproval.
France is also facing social tensions, with a “left-wing collective named ‘Block Everything’” calling for a day of action.
The 2027 presidential election is described as “wide open,” with analysts predicting the far right has its best chance of winning.
The article noted that three-time presidential candidate Marine Le Pen was convicted and sentenced to “four years’ imprisonment, two of which were suspended, and a fine of 100,000 euros ($117,000),” and was banned from standing for office for “five years.”
However, her appeal will be heard from “January 13 to February 12, 2026,” which could revive her presidential hopes.
Cheered by her MPs, Le Pen urged Macron to call snap elections, saying it is “not an option but an obligation” and describing Bayrou’s administration as a “phantom government.”
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