Articles for tag: French Constitution, French Elections, Macron, Emmanuel, motion of no confidence

Déjà Vu

At the resumption of political activity after the summer, France’s Prime Minister François Bayrou unexpectedly announced that he would use his constitutional prerogative to ask for a parliamentary vote of confidence on September 8. The main decision now facing the French president – who has repeatedly declared that he will not leave office early – is whether to attempt to construct a new governing formula within the current parliament or to call new elections just fourteen months after the last dissolution. Neither option is attractive, and both would effectively reset French politics to 2024.

6. September 2025

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Passing a Budget in Times of Legislative Paralysis

On December 4, the French National Assembly passed a motion of no-confidence against Prime Minister Michel Barnier’s government. This is an exceptionally rare occurrence and its legal consequences are, by necessity, uncertain. What is indisputable, however, is that the very passage of this motion places the government into caretaker status, which considerably restricts its legal authority. This legal situation presents acute challenges for the two budget-related bills currently pending in Parliament since both bills must be passed before December 31.

11. Dezember 2024

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The French Premiership Saga

The appointment of Michel Barnier as French Prime Minister and the designation of a cabinet even further to the right has led to thousands of protesters rallying across France. Taking a step back from the latest developments, this post looks back to some of the constitutional tensions the events of this summer have exposed. It argues that Emmanuel Macron’s actions following the snap election have relied on a distorted reading of the French constitution. In addition to raising serious legal questions, these actions have also set worrying precedents that arguably fit in a pattern of “executive aggrandizement”.

7. Oktober 2024

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The Limits of Contemporary French Constitutionalism

French President Emmanuel Macron’s dissolution of France’s National Assembly (its lower house of parliament) on June 9th took many by surprise.  The results of the snap election’s first round suggest that Macron’s risky gamble—an attempt at turning the tide after his party suffered a major blow in the European Parliament elections—backfired majestically. However, more than a political setback for Macron, and outside of the many (highly warranted) concerns as to what harmful policies a new far-right-dominated parliament could pass, the move also raises many interesting constitutional law questions. Whatever the outcome of the second round on Sunday, July 7, France will face unprecedented circumstances that are likely to put the country’s 1958 constitution to the test.

5. Juli 2024

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Ist die V. Republik sterblich?

Bei den Europawahlen am 9. Juni 2024 wurde der rechtsextreme Rassemblement national in fast allen französischen Départements stärkste Kraft und erhielt mehr als doppelt so viele Stimmen wie das Lager von Präsident Macron. Noch am Wahlabend löste Macron die Nationalversammlung auf und kündigte den ersten Gang der Neuwahlen für den 30. Juni an. Er zwingt hiermit Frankreich dazu, seine jahrhundertelange Suche nach der richtigen Regierung(-sform) fortzusetzen. Es ist zweifelhaft, ob es nach dem zweiten Wahlgang am 7. Juli 2024 das Regierungssystem der V. Republik noch so geben wird, wie wir es kennen.

18. Juni 2024

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A High-Stakes Game

So it has happened: Marine Le Pen’s Rassemblement National (RN) received more than twice the votes of Macron’s Renaissance list in the European elections (31.4% vs. 14.6%). Following the results, Macron announced to dissolve parliament and call an early election. Judging by the immediate reactions on social media, Macron’s announcement shocked several commentators and the public. Yet, from the perspective of the 2027 presidential elections, the reasoning may not be as reckless as it seems. Macron’s calculation is based on the consideration that three more years of the current situation would make a Le Pen presidency highly likely in 2027.

10. Juni 2024

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Constitutionalizing the right to abortion is not political opportunism

Recently, Baptiste Charvin wrote on this blog that the right to abortion has become the subject of political instrumentalization in France. In his view, it illustrates a general phenomenon of 'constitutional desacralization' and underlines the division the French people are experiencing, 'despite being governed by a Constitution that enshrines a set of values that should be shared by all.' I argue that the French parliamentary debate on the right to abortion is anything but a phenomenon of recent political opportunism. Instead, it reflects – for once – a majority opinion, not the division of French society.

27. November 2023

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