French President Emmanuel Macron announced he would be appointing centrist Francois Bayrou as the country’s new prime minister, after the last government fell apart last week.
The National Assembly voted no confidence in Prime Minister Michel Barnier’s government earlier this month, after gridlock in the chamber over passing a 2025 budget for the country. Macron announced Bayrou’s appointment Friday and asked him to form a government.
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Bayrou founded and leads the Democratic Movement party, MoDem, and was a key supporter of Macron’s 2017 presidential run. He is also the mayor of Pau and previously served as Macron’s justice minister at the beginning of the president’s first term.
The incoming prime minister had been involved in an investigation in the misuse of European Parliament funds, but was cleared by a court earlier this year. He previously ran for president of France three times.
Bayrou will be Macron’s fourth prime minister this year, during a turbulent time in French politics.
Macron, who is still in office until 2027, called a snap election in June after the right-wing National Rally had a strong performance in the European Parliament elections, hoping to stymie their momentum. The result had the left-wing alliance take the most seats, after Macron’s party and the left-wing alliance worked to strategically withdraw candidates from some races to block National Rally from a majority.
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Since the election, instability has reigned over the National Assembly with the collapse of Barnier’s government earlier this month being the latest instance.
The earliest a new election can be called for the National Assembly is June 2025, due to law which stipulates that the chamber cannot be dissolved within a year of the previous election. The political instability comes as France hosted several prominent events this year, including the reopening of Notre Dame Cathedral and the 2024 Olympics, both in Paris.
