According to reports from Agence France-Presse (AFP) and France’s Le Monde, on August 31, the “Unsubmissive France” (LFI), the most radical party within the French left-wing coalition “New Popular Union” (NFP), introduced a motion to impeach President Emmanuel Macron, accusing him of “serious misconduct” in fulfilling his constitutional duties.
LFI expressed dissatisfaction with Macron’s refusal to appoint a prime minister nominated by the left-wing coalition and called on other political groups in both houses of parliament to support the impeachment, in the name of “defending democracy.” Mathilde Panot, head of the LFI parliamentary group, stated that the party had circulated the impeachment draft to other members of parliament in hopes of gathering signatures.
French media pointed out that, under Article 68 of the French Constitution, the impeachment process for a president is lengthy and complicated. Even if LFI manages to collect enough signatures to initiate the procedure, the chances of the impeachment being approved are slim.
Meanwhile, according to Russian news agency Sputnik, on August 31, hundreds gathered in Paris at the call of the far-right party “Patriots,” demanding Macron’s resignation and condemning the French authorities for the arrest of Telegram founder Pavel Durov.
It has been over 50 days since Macron called for early National Assembly elections, and he has yet to successfully form a new government.
In the National Assembly elections that concluded in early July, the left-wing coalition NFP won 193 seats, falling short of the 289 seats required for an absolute majority, making it unable to form a government on its own. The centrist alliance “Ensemble,” led by President Macron, secured 166 seats, while Marine Le Pen’s far-right party “National Rally” (RN) came in third with 142 seats.
Following the conclusion of the Paris Olympics, Macron held multiple rounds of talks with various political groups. He rejected the left-wing coalition’s nominee for prime minister, senior civil servant Lucie Castets, arguing that such a choice would lead to instability, as centrist and right-wing parties would likely vote down a left-wing government in a no-confidence motion. Macron emphasized that “the stability of our political system requires us not to pursue this option.”
The LFI criticized Macron’s statements, accusing him of “refusing to acknowledge the left-wing coalition’s leading position in the parliamentary elections” and condemned him for “abusing his power.” They threatened to initiate impeachment proceedings against him. LFI leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon even wrote that Macron had created an “exceptionally severe situation.”
On August 31, LFI presented a draft motion to impeach Macron and began gathering signatures from members of parliament.
“LFI lawmakers wrote in their draft motion, ‘The National Assembly and Senate can and must defend democracy from the president’s authoritarian tendencies.'”
The LFI has specifically targeted Macron’s multiple rounds of negotiations since July in search of a suitable prime minister, stating that the president should not be engaging in “political deals.”
According to AFP, the French Constitution was written based on the assumption that elections would produce an absolute majority for one party. However, it does not provide clear guidance for situations where no party secures a majority in the parliament.
As for LFI’s impeachment efforts, AFP noted that the chances of success “face significant obstacles.”