French PM expected to survive two no-confidence votes on day of reckoning
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French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu faces two no-confidence votes in parliament on Thursday but is expected to narrowly survive after suspending President Emmanuel Macron’s controversial pension reform to win over the left. Lecornu, reappointed just last week, risked becoming France’s shortest-serving premier before offering to delay the reform until after the 2027 presidential election.
The Socialist Party, which holds the balance of power, welcomed the concession and confirmed it would not back the motions put forward by the far-left and far-right National Rally.
Despite this, the votes are expected to be close, with potential defections from Socialist or Republican lawmakers adding uncertainty. Republican vice-president Florence Portelli criticised Lecornu’s stance, calling the budget “Socialist” and saying her party’s voters “expect us to have values.”
If Lecornu loses, his government must resign, and Macron could face intense pressure to call a snap parliamentary election, deepening France’s political instability. Even if he survives, Lecornu’s position remains fragile as he enters difficult negotiations on the 2026 budget, with opposition parties pushing for new wealth taxes. His move to suspend the pension reform—one of Macron’s key economic legacies—further highlights the president’s dwindling domestic achievements after eight years in power.
