The government is still resigning and Emmanuel Macron does not seem to be in a hurry to appoint a new Prime Minister, although he has accepted the resignation of Gabriel Attal. On the left, there is still no agreement on a name to propose.
The essential
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Although the colour of the National Assembly does not determine which side the future Prime Minister will be on, tradition dictates that it does. But the chaotic night from Friday to Saturday in the lower house gave the majority of the seats in the office to the New Popular Front. Uncertainty still remains over Emmanuel Macron’s future choice.
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The left still cannot reach an agreement. The PS and LFI are arguing over the name to propose for Matignon. Olivier Faure proposed a vote between Huguette Bello (whom the PS had initially rejected) and Laurence Tubiana, Jean-Luc Mélenchon believes that the PS is “obstructing”.
12:41 – Eric Coquerel elected to the Finance Committee will resign if the NFP reaches Matignon
The rebellious elected official was re-elected to the Finance Committee, which is a position reserved for the opposition. He announced that he would resign from this position if a Prime Minister from the New Popular Front was appointed in order to make way for a new opposition group, thus continuing to press the president to appoint a new occupant of Matignon.
12:06 – Jean-Luc Mélenchon insists that an NFP Prime Minister be appointed
“With the result of the Assembly’s votes yesterday, President Macron has the answer to his question on the ground he had chosen,” writes Jean-Luc Mélenchon on X. He considers that the NFP having had the majority of seats in the office of the National Assembly, Matignon must return to one of its members: “The New Popular Front has the majority. Now we must appoint an NFM prime minister without delay,” urges the leader of the rebels.
With the result of the Assembly’s votes yesterday, President Macron has the answer to his question on the ground he had chosen. The New Popular Front has the majority. Now we must appoint an NFP Prime Minister without delay. Enough denial of the French vote.
— Jean-Luc Mélenchon (@JLMelenchon) July 20, 2024
10:59 – Emmanuel Macron expected to appoint new Prime Minister after Olympics
While the various parties and groups are trying to find a name to propose to Emmanuel Macron for Matignon, the President of the Republic does not seem to be in a hurry to appoint a new Prime Minister. Now that he is certain that the left is not in power, he has the possibility of choosing a Prime Minister from another side, with less risk of a motion of censure. According to the President’s entourage, he should wait until the end of the Olympic Games and before the start of the Paralympics to choose a new tenant of the Palais Bourbon.
10:46 – Mélenchon denounces the PS’s “brutal methods” to find a name for Matignon
After the publication of a PS press release calling for a vote by NFP deputies to choose “the candidate of the New Popular Front for the post of Prime Minister” by July 23, Jean-Luc Mélenchon denounced “brutal methods”. The PS “decides when things stop, when they start, who we have the right to propose or not”, he deplores, adding that the socialists are “obstructing” in order to propose a name.
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How soon will the new government be appointed?
Let’s say it right away, not right away. During his speech announcing that he would resign on the evening of the second round of the legislative elections on July 7, Gabriel Attal specified that he “assumes[ait] [s]his functions as long as duty requires.” In other words, Emmanuel Macron will not be obliged to accept it immediately and even once this resignation is confirmed, a “resigning government” could remain in place. As a reminder, Emmanuel Macron took three weeks before formalizing the departure of Jean Castex following the 2022 presidential election.
First of all, the future Prime Minister will not be known quickly because Emmanuel Macron is constrained by his schedule. He left for the United States at the beginning of the week for a NATO summit and only returned to France on Thursday. Furthermore, he announced that he wanted to wait for the “structuring” of the Assembly (in particular the constitution of the groups and the election of their presidents) to appoint a new head of government. In a letter to the French people published on July 10, he also considered that it was necessary to “give the political forces a little time to build [des] compromise with serenity and respect for everyone. Until then, the current Government will continue to exercise its responsibilities and will then be in charge of current affairs as is the republican tradition.”
Given the composition of the National Assembly, the President of the Republic will have the task of finding a Prime Minister capable of gathering the support of at least 289 deputies. The same applies to the ministers that the latter will then have to propose. Otherwise, the new government as a whole would be exposed to a motion of censure which, if voted for by more than half of the elected representatives, would lead to the overthrow of the ministerial team. It would therefore be necessary to start all over again.
The problem is that Emmanuel Macron will have to accommodate all sensitivities, from the left of course, from the center naturally, but also from the right. If the NFP came out on top, the head of state has already ruled out governing with the LFI deputies. So out goes these sixty elected officials, who could be compensated by the sixty LR who should once again join the Palais Bourbon. Finding personalities who suit the ecologists, socialists, communists, macronists and republicans will not be easy. Not to mention the programmatic points on which everyone will have to agree. The negotiations are still expected to be long and complex. Suffice to say that Gabriel Attal should make extra…