The French President, Emmanuel Macron has refused the resignation of the country’s prime minister, Gabriel Attal, asking him to remain in office as the temporary head of government on Monday after the tumultuous election results left the government in a somewhat “unresolved state”.
French voters had divided the legislature on the left, center and far right, leaving no faction near to the majority needed to institute a government. The voter results from Sunday raised issues of a possible paralysis for the European Union’s second-largest economy.
Macron had wagered that his decision to call snap elections would give France a “moment of clarification,” but the outcome revealed quite the opposite, and in less than three weeks before the start of the Paris Olympics, when the country will be under an international spotlight.
Prime Minister Gabriel Attal had said he would remain in office if required but he tendered his resignation early Monday morning. Macron, who named him the prime minister just seven months ago, immediately asked him to stay on “to ensure the stability of the country.”
Attal has on Sunday made it clear that he disproved of Macron’s decision to call the surprise elections. The results of the two rounds election left no obvious path to form a government for either the leftist coalition that emerged first place, Macron’s centrist alliance, or the far right.
Why It Matters
A political deadlock can have far-reaching implications for the war in Ukraine, global diplomacy and Europe’s economic stability.
