2024-01-08 18:23:42
French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne has resigned. After days of media speculation regarding a government reshuffle, Borne submitted her resignation on Monday, the Elysée announced. President Emmanuel Macron accepted her resignation and thanked her “from the bottom of his heart” on X for her “exemplary” work in the service of the country. Macron is expected to name a successor shortly. Education Minister Gabriel Attal is considered the favorite.
If appointed, the 34-year-old would be France’s youngest head of government. The aspiring politician is a close confidante of Macron and has already held several positions in the government. He would also be France’s first openly gay prime minister.
Attal is in a relationship with Stéphane Séjourné, leader of the liberal group Renew Europe in the European Parliament. Borne was only the second woman to head the French government following Edith Cresson, who was in office for almost a year in 1991.
Also in discussion are former Agriculture Minister Julien Denormandie and Defense Minister Sébastien Lecornu, both of whom are also confidants of the president. While Lecornu and Denormandie are considered close but discreet confidants of the president, the widely popular Attal might become a competitor for Macron in the medium term. Macron separated from his first prime minister, Edouard Philippe, when he became more popular than himself in polls.
The next prime minister is also expected to change numerous cabinet members, including Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna. Macron has had a difficult year in which his government pushed through a hugely unpopular pension reform and faced unrest over the killings of teenagers by police in the summer.
In December, the government also passed a controversial immigration law that led to divisions within its own ranks. Several ministers are said to have threatened to resign. The left-wing opposition accused the government of the reform being inspired by the ideas of right-wing populists, whose parliamentary group in the National Assembly had completely voted for it.
Borne had always vigorously defended Macron’s plans and incurred the anger of many MPs who accused her of using constitutional tricks to push through unpopular reforms.
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