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The French leader has requested Sébastien Lecornu to resume duties as head of government just days after he left the post, triggering a week of high drama and political turmoil.

The president declared towards the end of the week, shortly after gathering leading factions in one place at the presidential palace, excluding the representatives of the far right and far left.

Lecornu's return was unexpected, as he said on national TV only two days ago that he was not seeking the position and his “mission is over”.

There is uncertainty whether he will be able to establish a ruling coalition, but he will have to hit the ground running. The new prime minister faces a time limit on Monday to put next year's budget before parliament.

Leadership Hurdles and Budgetary Strains

The presidency announced the president had “tasked [Lecornu] with forming a government”, and his advisors suggested he had been given complete freedom to proceed.

Lecornu, who is one of the president's key supporters, then released a detailed message on an online platform in which he consented to as an obligation the assignment entrusted to me by the president, to strive to secure a national budget by the end of the year and tackle the common issues of our fellow citizens.

Political divisions over how to lower the country's public debt and balance the books have caused the resignation of two of the past three prime ministers in the last year, so his task is daunting.

The nation's debt in the past months was almost 114% of gross domestic product – the third largest in the currency union – and the annual fiscal gap is expected to amount to over five percent of GDP.

Lecornu emphasized that “no-one will be able to shirk” the need of repairing the nation's budget. In just a year and a half before the completion of his mandate, he cautioned that prospective ministers would have to put on hold their political goals.

Governing Without a Majority

Compounding the challenge for Lecornu is that he will face a parliamentary test in a National Assembly where Macron has no majority to support him. His public standing hit a record low in the latest survey, according to research that put his approval rating on 14 percent.

The far-right leader of the right-wing group, which was not invited of the president's discussions with party leaders on Friday, said that the decision, by a president increasingly isolated at the official residence, is a “bad joke”.

They would promptly introduce a vote of no confidence against a doomed coalition, whose sole purpose was fear of an election, Bardella added.

Building Alliances

The prime minister at least knows the pitfalls ahead as he tries to form a government, because he has already spent two days recently talking to factions that might join his government.

Alone, the moderate factions lack a majority, and there are splits within the traditionalists who have supported Macron's governments since he failed to secure enough seats in elections last year.

So he will seek left-wing parties for potential support.

As a gesture to progressives, Macron's team hinted the president was evaluating a pause to some aspects of his divisive retirement changes implemented recently which raised the retirement age from the early sixties.

It was insufficient of what progressive chiefs hoped for, as they were expecting he would choose a leader from their side. Olivier Faure of the Socialists stated without assurances, they would offer no support to back the prime minister.

Fabien Roussel from the Communists stated following discussions that the progressive camp wanted real change, and a prime minister from the central bloc would not be endorsed by the French people.

Greens leader Marine Tondelier expressed shock Macron had provided few concessions to the left, adding that the situation would deteriorate.