No elections are expected for 2023 in France at the moment. However, the risk of an early legislative election cannot be totally ruled out. In June, voters denied President Emmanuel Macron, re-elected in April 2022, an absolute majority in the National Assembly. Meanwhile, successive motions for no-confidence votes against his liberal Renaissance party indicate a shaky political ground under the French leader.
With only a relative majority, the adoption of many texts has proven laborious. Most of the opposition parties have had or will have Congresses to elect new leadership in the coming weeks and are all competing with each other to distinguish themselves from Macron and his government.
During the budget vote, French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne was confronted with more than ten no-confidence motions in nine weeks. As none were adopted, her government is still in place, but divisive texts – such as the pension reform – could contribute to its downfall. Macron has previously warned that if a no-confidence motion toppled the government, he would dissolve the National Assembly, triggering early parliamentary elections.
If they were to take place, the issue at stake would be the progression of the far right. The image of Marine Le Pen and her party is improving, while the left is showing signs of fracturing, especially within the parties rather than between coalition participants. Further shrinks in Macron’s relative majority without a creation of an alternative majority with political coherence could cause political instability, to which France, a founding country of the European Union, is not accustomed.
Source: euractiv.com
