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The French leader has called upon Sébastien Lecornu to come back as French prime minister only four days after he resigned, sparking a period of political upheaval and crisis.

Macron made the announcement on Friday evening, hours after meeting key political groups in one place at the presidential palace, omitting the figures of the extremist parties.

His reappointment came as a surprise, as he stated on broadcast recently that he was not “chasing the job” and his “mission is over”.

There is uncertainty whether he will be able to form a government, but he will have to hit the ground running. The new prime minister faces a cut-off on the start of the week to present the annual budget before lawmakers.

Governing Obstacles and Budgetary Strains

The presidency announced the president had “tasked [Lecornu] with forming a government”, and his advisors indicated he had been given “carte blanche” to act.

The prime minister, who is one of Macron's closest allies, then issued a long statement on X in which he agreed to take on “out of duty” the mission assigned by the president, to make every effort to secure a national budget by the end of the year and address the common issues of our countrymen.

Ideological disagreements over how to lower government borrowing and reduce the fiscal shortfall have resulted in the ouster of multiple premiers in the last year, so his challenge is daunting.

The nation's debt in the past months was nearly 114 percent of economic output (GDP) – the number three in the currency union – and this year's budget deficit is projected to amount to 5.4% of GDP.

The premier emphasized that no one can avoid the imperative of restoring the nation's budget. With only 18 months before the conclusion of his term, he warned that those in the cabinet would have to delay their presidential ambitions.

Governing Without a Majority

What makes it even harder for the prime minister is that he will face a show of support in a legislative body where Macron has lacks sufficient support to endorse his government. The president's popularity plummeted recently, according to a survey that put his approval rating on just 14%.

The far-right leader of the far-right National Rally, which was not invited of Macron's talks with party leaders on Friday, remarked that Lecornu's reappointment, by a president increasingly isolated at the presidential palace, is a misstep.

His party would immediately bring a motion of censure against a failing government, whose main motivation was avoiding a vote, the leader stated.

Forming Coalitions

Lecornu at least knows the pitfalls in his path as he tries to establish a cabinet, because he has already spent two days lately meeting with political groups that might participate in his administration.

On their own, the centrist parties cannot form a government, and there are splits within the traditionalists who have helped prop up Macron's governments since he lacked support in the previous vote.

So Lecornu will look to progressive groups for possible backing.

In an attempt to court the left, Macron's team indicated the president was considering a delay to some aspects of his highly contentious retirement changes enacted last year which raised the retirement age from 62 to 64.

The offer was inadequate of what left-wing leaders hoped for, as they were expecting he would choose a premier from their camp. Olivier Faure of the Socialists commented without assurances, they would offer no support for the premier.

The Communist figure from the Communists stated following discussions that the left wanted substantive shifts, and a leader from the central bloc would not be supported by the citizens.

Greens leader Marine Tondelier said she was “stunned” Macron had given minimal offers to the left, adding that “all of this is going to turn out very badly”.