The list of names being considered for the post of Prime Minister is growing further as the left continues to divide following LFI’s call for Emmanuel Macron’s dismissal.
The essentials
- La France Insoumise has filed a request for the dismissal of Emmanuel Macron if he does not appoint Lucie Castets to Matignon, a candidate proposed by the New Popular Front but whose candidacy had been rejected by the president several weeks ago. This announcement by LFI is not supported by its allies who have disassociated themselves from it.
- The Élysée summoned the heads of parliamentary groups (Senate and Assembly) on August 23 for a series of discussions aimed at “continuing to move towards the constitution of the broadest and most stable majority possible”. The New Popular Front, which came out on top in the legislative elections, assured that it would attend this meeting “together”.
- Other names are circulating for the post of Prime Minister, such as Bernard Cazeneuve or Xavier Bertrand. Those of Jean-Louis Borloo and Michel Barnier have also been mentioned. A new name has emerged, that of Karim Bouamrane, socialist mayor of Saint-Ouen.
Live
10:22 – The mayor of Saint-Ouen mentioned for the post of Prime Minister
According to Le Monde or L’Opinion, Karim Bouamrane, socialist mayor of Saint-Ouen, is on the list being considered by Emmanuel Macron for the position of future head of government. He made a name for himself during the Olympic Games by making Saint-Ouen the host city for Brazilian athletes. He has a particular left-wing profile: he is a former activist in the Communist Party and then the Socialist Party, but has also run cybersecurity companies in the United States. In 2020, he was elected mayor of Saint-Ouen, the city of his childhood. In a portrait published in Le Figaro in mid-August, Karim Bouamrane defends “left-wing values” such as “progress, solidarity, fraternity, sorority”. He also deplores his camp’s “abandonment” of “security”, which he considers to be “a political mistake”. An aspect that could appeal to Emmanuel Macron, just like his criticism of LFI. For the formation of the government, he defends a “coalition” because according to him, “no one won” during the legislative elections. “In the context of a short-term government, where it will be necessary to snatch some social victories, the fundamental role of the left, its profile is very interesting”, assured the HuffPost a member of the Socialist Party.
08/19/24 – 11:34 p.m. – Marine Le Pen denounces “a coup de force” regarding the presence of Lucie Castets at the Élysée
Lucie Castets will indeed be present at the Élysée on August 23. Continuing his round of consultations regarding the choice of his next Prime Minister, Emmanuel Macron has decided to bring together party leaders and parliamentary group presidents at the presidential palace for a meeting. A meeting in which the candidate designated by the NFP will therefore participate, to the great displeasure of the leader of the RN deputies, Marine Le Pen, who castigated this choice. “In what capacity does Lucie Castets claim to participate in the meeting concerning party leaders and parliamentary group presidents in the National Assembly and the Senate?”, she asked on X (ex-Twitter). Considering that the senior civil servant was imposed on the head of state by the “minority coalition of the NFP”, the three-time presidential candidate denounced a similar decision as “a coup de force”.
Learn more
How soon will the new government be appointed?
Emmanuel Macron held a “political truce” for the duration of the Olympic Games, while Gabriel Attal’s government resigned on July 16. The President of the Republic had estimated that no new government would be appointed before “mid-August”, preferring “stability” for the duration of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
Given the composition of the National Assembly, the President of the Republic has set himself the task of finding a Prime Minister capable of gathering the support of at least 289 deputies, in order to ensure stability. 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…
What could be the profile of the future Prime Minister?
Emmanuel Macron took advantage of a summer break from Fort Brégançon to give new clues about the profile of the new Prime Minister. Clear elements are now emerging for the person who will take over from Gabriel Attal. The head of government will have to be “a man or woman, consensual, who pleases both the left and the right”, we can read in the columns of Le Monde. According to the Elysée, this personality will also have to give off “a scent of cohabitation”. This is an important clue about the composition of the new government and its political color. Especially after Emmanuel Macron’s refusal to see the NFP candidate, Lucie Castets, at Matignon.
Xavier Bertrand is one of the main names circulating for Matignon. The LR president of the Hauts-de-France region Xavier Bertrand, himself, is even supported by several figures from the center and the right. “He is a great republican among the Republicans and a great regional president” declared on this subject Sabrina Agresti-Roubache, resigning Secretary of State for the City, on July 30th. The resigning Minister of the Interior Gérald Darmanin spoke of him “a politician with very great competence”, he could “greatly serve France”, a day earlier. Concerning the main person concerned, there is no direct contact with the President of the Republic. Bertrand and Macron exchange, certainly, but through “emissaries” according to information from Le Parisien.
The President of the Republic is consulting at least on a second name for the post of Prime Minister, it is Bernard Cazeneuve. The former tenant of Matignon under François Hollande remains however much less publicized than Xavier Bertrand, and much more discreet about his new political aspirations. However, according to information from Le Parisien, the latter recently spoke with the head of state “whom he had already seen discreetly at the Elysée in the spring (well before the dissolution). A profile that could quite satisfy the consensual dimension sought by Emmanuel Macron to replace Gabriel Attal.
On Sunday, August 4, the resigning Minister for Gender Equality, Aurore Bergé, also mentioned three names from the Republicans to fill the post of Prime Minister in place of Gabriel Attal. Unsurprisingly, Xavier Bertrand, the President of the Hauts-de-France region. Then Michel Barnier, former minister we told you about in this article on July 31st in the context of a possible technical Prime Minister. Finally, the name of Gérard Larcher, current President of the Senate was also mentioned by Aurore Bergé to join Matignon. The three “have solid experience of government, Parliament, and compromise”, believes the Macronist minister, from the right. Jean-Louis Borloo is also mentioned.