France Faces Political Turmoil as Government Falls

Just before 7 pm, the result of Monday's vote of no confidence in the National Assembly in Paris arrived.

194 voted in favor, 364 voted against, announced Speaker Yaël Braun-Pivet.

The result was expected, despite Bayrou in the debate preceding the vote urging calm, for the nation's and the economy's sake.

You have the power to overthrow the government, but you do not have the power to erase reality, Bayrou said, among other things, according to the newspaper Le Monde.

A government source tells the news agency AFP that he will submit his resignation application to President Emmanuel Macron early on Tuesday morning.

Painful savings

Bayrou has led a center-oriented minority government since December.

The dissatisfaction with him is mainly due to the painful savings he has proposed. France is struggling with a gigantic national debt – around 114 percent of GDP – and this summer, the Prime Minister presented a budget proposal with savings of nearly 44 billion euros.

He wants, among other things, to cut back on the public sector, freeze pensions, and abolish two public holidays – which has sparked anger among, among others, trade unions.

All opposition parties, from right to left, have condemned the budget proposal. The Prime Minister has invited the parties to talks, but has not received much response. Instead, the tone has rather sharpened, not least from the extremes, which are deeply dissatisfied with President Macron.

Unpopular, in minority and hated: Macronism only rules through fear, said Mathilde Panot, group leader for the left-wing party LFI in the debate.

Demand for new elections

Macron now promises to nominate a new Prime Minister "within a few days", reports AFP.

However, it will hardly be easy. Last autumn, he tried with a more right-wing government – whereupon the then Prime Minister Michel Barnier was dismissed after just three months. If he now turns to the left, heavy parts of the right and far-right have already promised to vote against.

This means that Macron may be forced to call another new election, just as he did in June last year, after his support parties suffered a painful loss in the French EU election.

The far-right's Marine Le Pen wants new elections.

Legally, politically and even morally, a dissolution (of parliament) is not just an alternative, but an obligation, Le Pen said in Monday's debate in Paris.

LFI leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon is also calling on Macron himself to throw in the towel.

"He should also leave", Mélenchon writes on X.

Tina Magnergård Bjers/TT

Agneta Liljeqvist/TT

Wiktor Nummelin/TT