Rita looks at France’s political crisis that deepens: another government toppled amid a fragmented parliament, following Macron’s failed snap election gamble, exclusively for Different Truths.
France has been plunged into a new political crisis after the government led by Prime Minister François Bayrou lost a vote of no confidence in the National Assembly and was forced to resign last month. This is the third time a French government has been toppled in just over a year, highlighting the country’s fragile political landscape.
The root cause of the crisis is a fragmented parliament, a direct consequence of President Emmanuel Macron’s decision to call a snap legislative election in June 2024. Macron had gambled on winning a clear majority, but the move backfired, leaving a legislature with no dominant political bloc. As a result, forming a stable government has become an increasingly difficult task.
The Trigger: A Vote of No Confidence
The immediate cause of the government’s fall was a vote of no confidence. Prime Minister Bayrou had initiated the vote himself to compel lawmakers to support his government’s controversial budget proposal. The proposed austerity measures, which included freezing welfare payments and eliminating two public holidays, were widely unpopular and sparked significant public backlash.
The opposition, comprising both left-wing and far-right parties, seized the opportunity to unite against the government. The no-confidence motion passed by a wide margin, obliging Bayrou to submit his government’s resignation to President Macron. This event underscores a key feature of France’s parliamentary system, where the government’s survival is contingent on the confidence of the legislature.
A History of Instability
While the current crisis is notable, France has a long history of political instability. The current Fifth Republic, established in 1958, was designed to empower the presidency and prevent the kind of prolonged legislative deadlocks seen under the Fourth Republic, which saw 24 governments in just 12 years. However, the current deeply divided parliament has revived fears of a return to that era of frequent governmental turnover.
The collapse of the Bayrou government highlights the ongoing challenges facing Macron, who has seen three prime ministers in just over a year. The president must now find a new prime minister capable of building consensus and successfully passing a budget, a task made increasingly difficult by the splintered National Assembly. This political uncertainty is not just a domestic issue but also raises concerns for Europe’s second-largest economy as it grapples with significant financial challenges.
Picture design by Anumita Roy
In recent times, due to escalation of hatred and aversion to the opposing viewpoint, electorates often get drawn to the pole with a feeling of “Whatever happens, we cannot let him/her win”.
This political psychology concept is known as Negative Partisanship.Though often such ‘hatred’ is manufactured by systematic subtle or blatant propaganda unleashed by vested interests, it is happening everywhere — be it in US, Europe and in India.
Fragility is a function of the contextual heritage of a country but the overall global trend of Negative Partisanship is clearly noticeable, popularized by Abramowitz & Webster (2016).
Abramowitz, A. I., & Webster, S. W. (2016). The rise of negative partisanship and the nationalization of U.S. elections in the 21st century. Electoral Studies, 41, 12–22.