PARIS: President Emmanuel Macron was expected Friday to name a new prime minister after days of deadlock over finding a candidate to replace Michel Barnier, whose ousting by parliament pushed France into a fresh crisis.
\nCentrist French politician Francois Bayrou, leader of the centrist MoDem party and seen as one of Macron\u2019s possible picks for prime minister, was to meet the president at 8:30 am (0730 GMT), sources close to the talks, asking not to be named, said.
\nBut it was not immediately clear whether Macron planned to receive Bayrou to announce his appointment or to inform him he had chosen another candidate.
\nWhoever is named will be the sixth prime minister of Macron\u2019s presidency after the toppling of Barnier, who lasted only three months. The new premier faces an immediate challenge in thrashing out a budget that can pass in parliament.
\nMacron has been confronted with the complex political equation that emerged from snap parliamentary elections this summer \u2014 how to secure a government against a no-confidence vote in a bitterly divided lower house where no party or alliance has a majority.
\nBarnier was ousted in a historic no-confidence vote on December 4 and there had been expectations Macron would announce his successor in an address to the nation even a day later.
\nBut in a sign of the stalemate after inconclusive legislative elections this summer, he did not name his successor then and has missed a 48-hour deadline he gave at a meeting of party leaders on Tuesday.
\nOn Thursday, Macron left France on a day-long trip to Poland but cut his visit short in an apparent bid to finalize the appointment.
\n\u201cThe statement naming the prime minister will be published tomorrow (Friday) morning,\u201d an aide to the president, asking not to be named, said late Thursday just after Macron touched down from the trip to Poland.
\n\u201cHe is finishing his consultations,\u201d the aide added, without giving further details.
\nThe announcement is likely to come in a written statement, with the new cabinet to be revealed at a later date.
\nEach prime minister under Macron has served successively less time in office and there is no guarantee the new premier will not follow this pattern.
\nAll the candidates widely floated so far have encountered objections from at least one side of the political spectrum.
\n\u201cThey are stuck,\u201d said a person close to Macron, asking not to be named, adding that \u201ceach name gets blocked.\u201d
\n\u201cNo one is in agreement around the president,\u201d added the source, expressing hope that Macron would surprise everyone with an unexpected choice.
\nMacron\u2019s apparent top pick, veteran centrist Bayrou, raises hackles on the left \u2014 wary of continuing the president\u2019s policies \u2014 and on the right, where he is disliked by influential former president Nicolas Sarkozy.
\nBeyond Bayrou, prime ministerial contenders include former Socialist prime minister Bernard Cazeneuve, current Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu, a Macron loyalist, and former foreign minister Jean-Yves Le Drian.
\nAnother name being discussed in the media is Roland Lescure, a former industry minister, but the nomination of the former Socialist risks inflaming the right.
\nThese \u201care names that have been around for years and haven\u2019t seduced the French. It\u2019s the past. I want us to look to the future,\u201d Greens leader Marine Tondelier said Thursday.
\n\u201cThe French public want a bit of enthusiasm, momentum, fresh wind, something new,\u201d she told France 2 television.
\nOpinion polls indicate the public is fed up with the crisis, with just over two-thirds of respondents to an Elabe poll published on Wednesday saying they want politicians to reach a deal not to overthrow a new government.
\nIn a separate IFOP poll, far-right National Rally (RN) figurehead Marine Le Pen was credited with 35 percent support in the first round of a future presidential election \u2014 well ahead of any likely opponent.
\nIn a critical moment, Le Pen on March 31, 2025 faces the verdict in an embezzlement trial on charges she denies. If convicted, she could lose the chance of standing in the 2027 elections and with it her best chance yet of winning the Elysee Palace.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
PARIS: President Emmanuel Macron was expected Friday to name a new prime minister after days of deadlock over finding a candidate to replace Michel Barnier, whose ousting by parliament pushed France into a fresh crisis. Centrist French politician Francois Bayrou, leader of the centrist MoDem party and seen as one of Macron\u2019s possible picks for […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":449135,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-449123","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n