Macron Picks Centrist Ally Bayrou As New French PM

The New Diplomat
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By Abiola Olawale

President Emmanuel Macron on Friday announced the appointment of Francois Bayrou, a prominent centrist leader, as the new prime minister of France.

Bayrou, who is 73 years old and serves as the head of the Democratic Movement (MoDem), a party allied with Macron’s own, steps into this role just nine days after a historic no-confidence vote led to the ousting of Michel Barnier’s government.

His appointment was announced in a press statement issued by the French presidency.

The statement reads in part:“The President of the Republic has appointed Mr. Francois Bayrou as prime minister and tasked him with forming a government.”

The New Diplomat reports that Bayrou becomes the sixth prime minister of France under Macron’s administration.

He will succeed Barnier, who became France’s shortest-serving prime minister and lasted only three months.

He is also Macron’s fourth prime minister of 2024. Bayrou now faces an immediate challenge in putting together a cabinet that can survive a no-confidence vote in a divided parliament and thrash out a 2025 budget in a bid to limit economic turmoil.

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