French leftist bloc nominates Lucie Castets as candidate for Prime Minister

During President Emmanuel Macron’s interview with France 2 television on Tuesday, an image of Lucie Castets was displayed on the screen / Photo: AFP

France's left-wing alliance has decided on a name to propose as the new prime minister following snap parliamentary elections.

The New Popular Front (NFP), which is expected to get the most seats in the National Assembly according to recent election results, decided to propose Lucie Castets, 37, an economist and civil servant working for the Paris city government, for the position, according to an official statement on Tuesday.

The alliance praised Castets’ expertise in fighting tax evasion and financial crime and her stance against President Emmanuel Macron’s much-contested pension reform which raised the retirement age to 64 in 2023 despite months of mass protests.

Divisions within left-wing bloc

The NFP struggled for weeks to come up with a solid name to propose to Macron as prime minister, resulting in severe divisions within the left-wing bloc after the second round of snap legislative polls on July 7.

Despite the effort, Macron said in an interview late on Tuesday that a new government would not be formed until mid-August, as the country would be preoccupied with the Olympics.

Macron last week accepted Prime Minister Gabriel Attal’s resignation following the election results, after initially rejecting it on July 8.

Attal will continue dealing with the government’s affairs until a new government is formed.

Political parties harshly criticised Macron for initially rejecting Attal's resignation, delaying the process and causing instability in the country.

When asked about Castets, who is unknown to the public, Macron told France 2: "This is not the issue. The name is not the issue. The issue is: Which majority can emerge at the (National) Assembly?"

"Until mid-August, we're in no position to change things, because it would create disorder," Macron added.

Paris Olympics

The Olympic Games in Paris, which run from Friday to Sunday, August 11, are a major logistics and security challenge for France, with 35 venues and an estimated 10,500 athletes.

The NFP could win more than 180 seats in the lower chamber of the parliament. The centrist alliance Together for the Republic, which is backed by Macron, finished second with more than 160 seats, while Jordan Bardella and Marine Le Pen's National Rally (RN) party got over 140 seats.

The National Assembly has 577 seats, and none of the three primary alliances was able to win an absolute majority of 289 lawmakers.

Macron dissolved parliament and announced early elections after the RN won more than 31% of the vote in European Parliament elections on June 9, defeating his centrist bloc.

Source: TRT World