French Lawmakers Vote to Oust Prime Minister Michel Barnier, Triggering Political Crisis

In a historic move, French lawmakers voted on Wednesday to oust Prime Minister Michel Barnier after just three months in office, plunging the country deeper into political turmoil. For the first time in over sixty years, the National Assembly voted in favor of a no-confidence motion, which had been proposed by the hard-left but was backed by the far-right led by Marine Le Pen.

The vote follows a summer election that resulted in a hung parliament, leaving no party with a clear majority and placing the far-right in a pivotal position. The National Assembly’s decision comes after Barnier’s controversial push to pass a social security financing bill earlier this week without a vote, sparking a standoff over next year’s austerity budget.

With the majority of 331 MPs backing the motion in the 577-member chamber, Speaker Yael Braun-Pivet confirmed that Barnier must submit his resignation to President Emmanuel Macron. Macron, who was in Saudi Arabia on a state visit when the vote took place, faces the difficult task of selecting a successor with over two years remaining in his presidential term.