French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu narrowly escaped a major political crisis on Thursday, October 16, 2025, as he survived a no-confidence vote that threatened to collapse his newly formed, precarious government and push France into deeper turmoil.
This crucial vote in the National Assembly, while a victory for Lecornu, merely paves the way for a potentially even tougher challenge: steering France’s 2026 budget through a fiercely divided parliament before the year’s end. This budget is vital for the European Union’s second-largest economy.
Lecornu’s unexpected survival also buys time for President Emmanuel Macron, who had hinted at the risky prospect of dissolving the National Assembly and calling snap legislative elections if the Prime Minister had been ousted.
The Prime Minister, a staunch ally of President Macron, was targeted by two no-confidence motions. One came from the hard-left France Unbowed party, and the other from Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally and its parliamentary allies.
The 577-seat chamber first addressed the France Unbowed motion, which ultimately failed to gain the necessary support. With 271 votes in favor, it fell short of the 289-vote majority required for it to pass.
A second motion, introduced by Ms. Le Pen, was also expected to fail, as her left-wing opponents were unlikely to lend their support.
However, Lecornu’s political struggles are far from over.
To secure the votes needed for his survival, Lecornu strategically hinted at reconsidering one of President Macron’s most contentious reforms: the gradual increase of France’s retirement age from 62 to 64.
This suggestion of suspending the 2023 pension reform persuaded some opposition lawmakers to reluctantly withdraw their support for the no-confidence efforts, at least for the time being.
Nevertheless, these lawmakers could easily shift their stance and back future no-confidence motions if their demands aren’t met during the upcoming, and likely contentious, budget negotiations.
Lecornu has pledged to avoid using a specific constitutional power that allows a government to bypass parliamentary approval for the budget—a controversial tactic employed by Macron’s previous government to force through the 2023 pension reform amid widespread public outrage.
Forging parliamentary consensus on tax increases, spending cuts, and other fiscal measures aimed at curbing France’s escalating state deficit and debt will undoubtedly prove to be an enormous challenge.