President Emmanuel Macron will appoint a new prime minister within days after François Bayrou was forced from office in a parliamentary no-confidence vote, the Elysée Palace has confirmed.
Bayrou’s government fell on Monday evening when 364 deputies voted against him compared to 194 in favour, far short of the majority needed to survive. He is expected to hand in his resignation on Tuesday, leaving Macron searching for his seventh prime minister since taking office.
The president’s office said he had “taken note” of the result and would appoint Bayrou’s replacement “in the next few days,” effectively ruling out snap elections despite mounting pressure from opposition parties. Macron is instead expected to seek a consensus figure capable of passing a budget in France’s fragmented parliament.
The Socialist Party, which holds 66 seats, has offered to form a government, though this risks alienating potential support from conservative Republicans. Marine Le Pen, whose National Rally is the largest opposition party, has demanded fresh legislative elections, calling them “not an option but an obligation.” Le Pen, however, stopped short of urging Macron to resign as she faces a possible five-year ban from office.
Meanwhile, the left-wing France Unbowed party announced plans to submit an impeachment motion against Macron, though the move is unlikely to succeed.
The political turmoil is unfolding against a backdrop of growing social unrest. Protests threatening to “block everything” are planned for Wednesday, while eight unions have called a nationwide strike for 18 September.
Bayrou had called the confidence vote himself in an effort to force parliament to accept his austerity budget. In a final appeal to MPs, he warned: “You can get rid of the government, but you can’t get rid of reality.”