French lawmakers on Monday withdrew confidence from the government of François Bayrou, who will submit his resignation to President Emmanuel Macron after less than nine months in office, threatening to plunge the country back into a severe political crisis.

364 MPs voted in favor of the no-confidence motion, while only 194 supported Bayrou, who announced that his government would bear responsibility for a 2026 budget bill that includes €44 billion in cuts.

Later, the French presidency announced that Macron"will meet tomorrow (Tuesday) with Prime Minister François Bayrou to accept his government's resignation. The president will name a new prime minister in the coming days."

Thus, Macron loses his second prime minister since his surprise decision in 2024 to dissolve the National Assembly. This decision followed the far-right's victory in the European Parliament elections, plunging the country into a major political and financial crisis without securing a majority in the new assembly.

Before the vote, Bayrou told the National Assembly: “This is a real test as head of government (…) and I chose this,” stressing that “the country’s future is at stake” due to its “excessive debt” (114 percent of GDP).

François Bayrou said:"Our country works and thinks it is getting richer, but in reality, it is getting poorer every year. It is a silent, invisible, internal bleeding that is unbearable."

“You have the power to overthrow the government, but you do not have the power to erase reality,” the prime minister warned, likening “being burdened by debt… to being subjected to military force” and deprived of freedom.

Consultations and"red lines"

The National Rally party (far-right) is pushing for early legislative elections.

On Monday, Marine Le Pen, the party's leader, considered dissolving parliament and calling early legislative elections"not an option but an obligation" for Macron.

The president, whose term ends in 2027, ruled out dissolving the National Assembly again at this time.

An opinion poll published Sunday revealed that Le Pen's party and its allies would lead the first round of the election if it were held, with 33 percent of the vote, far ahead of the left and the presidential camp.

Consultations have already begun, with the Socialist Party positioned at the center of the game, expressing its"readiness" to assume power, but within the framework of a left-wing government without the"Macronists."

Macron finds himself trapped between a far-right whose influence has been growing over the years and elections, and a radical left (represented by the France Insoumise party) that has become increasingly hardline and hostile to him. This forces him to seek to expand his centrist bloc and search for a right-wing or centrist figure acceptable to the Socialists.

A source close to the president said,"Stability is needed. The most stable thing is a common base that engages in dialogue with the Socialists." However, the task appears difficult given the parties' adherence to their positions.

"The current problem in France is that each party has red lines, and these red lines make it absolutely impossible to form a coalition. No coalition has a majority, and no coalition can last forever," Mathieu Gallard, of the Ipsos polling institute, told AFP.

Names being circulated include Sébastien Lecornu, Minister of the Armed Forces, Gérald Darmanin, Minister of Justice, and Éric Lombard, Minister of the Economy.

social movements

The challenge facing Macron is becoming more serious amid strong feelings of distrust toward him and a decline in his popularity to its lowest levels since he came to power in 2017, with 77 percent of the French expressing dissatisfaction with his management of the country.

In addition to the budget crisis and political impasse, France is preparing for a period of social unrest, beginning with the first test day on Wednesday.

A"civil" movement that emerged over the summer on social media under the slogan "Let's disrupt everything" and is supported by some unions and the radical left has called for a nationwide shutdown on Wednesday. However, the actual extent of the mobilization remains unknown.

Unions also called for a day of strike and demonstrations on September 18 to denounce government policies and Bayrou's budget proposal, although his government would likely have fallen by that date.

Fitch Ratings will announce its credit rating for French debt on Friday, with the possibility of a downgrade under current circumstances.