France Faces Political Turmoil as Protests Loom and New PM Needed

Sun Oct 19 2025 23:50:47 GMT+0300 (Eastern European Summer Time)

Pressure mounts on President Macron to appoint a new prime minister swiftly following the resignation of François Bayrou, amid ongoing protests challenging his austerity measures.

Following the resignation of François Bayrou after a lost vote of no confidence, French President Emmanuel Macron is under pressure to quickly select a new prime minister. As the country braces for nationwide protests organized by a grassroots group against austerity measures, Macron's administration finds itself in a precarious political landscape, facing high debts and potential social unrest.

French President Emmanuel Macron has come under pressure to name a new prime minister quickly after François Bayrou lost a vote of no confidence and on Tuesday handed him his resignation.

The fall of Bayrou's government came as no surprise due to a majority in France's hung parliament opposing Bayrou's bid to address the country's spiraling debt with €44bn (£38bn) budget cuts.

With one of the highest budget deficits in the eurozone and mounting criticism from political rivals, Macron's decision is urgent as France faces protests on Wednesday from the grassroots movement Bloquons Tout - Let's Block Everything. Authorities plan to deploy 80,000 police in anticipation of the unrest.

Macron has had weeks to prepare for this shift, as the confidence vote was initiated by Bayrou himself. He is expected to select a new prime minister in the coming days—the fifth since he won a second term in 2022.

The new leader will have to navigate a fragmented parliament split into three factions, none of which hold a majority, with many calling for fresh elections rather than appointing a new prime minister.

Speculation about candidates has been rampant, with names like Assembly speaker Yaël Braun-Pivet and current defense minister Sébastien Lecornu surfacing. However, observers suggest Macron must seek support from the left or center-left to garner backing from the Socialists and centrists for a necessary budget to address France's debt situation.

Additionally, the call from Macron's ally and ex-prime minister Gabriel Attal for a technocrat negotiator to unify the diverging factions was met with resistance from rivals like Marine Le Pen, who are advocating for new elections.

As protests loom, officials have indicated they expect significant participation, potentially up to 100,000 protestors nationwide. Concerns about violence mar the discussions as France's public debt rises to €3.3tn, amounting to 114% of its GDP.

In the build-up to these events, Paris police reported instances of pig heads left outside mosques, events condemned by city officials as racist acts, further complicating the political climate.