🔗 Share this article The French PM Lecornu Steps Down After Under a 30-Day Period in Office France's Prime Minister Lecornu has stepped down, under 24 hours after his cabinet was presented. The presidential office made the announcement after Lecornu met Macron for an hour on the start of the week. This unexpected development comes only under four weeks after he was appointed prime minister following the downfall of the prior administration of François Bayrou. Various groups in the legislature had fiercely criticised the makeup of the new government, which was largely unchanged to the previous one, and promised to block its approval. Demands for Snap Polls and Political Unrest A number of factions are now calling for early elections, with others calling for Macron to also leave office - even though he has always said he will not stand down before his mandate concludes in 2027. "Macron needs to choose: calling new elections or leaving office," said Sébastien Chenu, one of prominent members of the RN party. The outgoing PM - the previous military head and a supporter of Macron - was the fifth premier in under two years. Background of Government Crisis French politics has been markedly turbulent since mid-2024, when early legislative polls resulted in a deadlocked assembly. This has created challenges for any prime minister to obtain required votes to enact new laws. The former cabinet was rejected in last month after the assembly declined to support his austerity budget, which aimed to cut state costs by $51 billion. Financial Challenges and Market Response France's deficit reached nearly 6% of the economy in the current year and its national debt is 114 percent of GDP. That is the number three debt level in the euro area after Italy and Greece, and equivalent to almost €50,000 per French citizen. Share prices dropped in the Paris exchange after the announcement about the PM broke on the start of the week.