On Thursday, 577 newly elected members of the National Assembly will elect the president of the lower house of the parliament. This vote may be decisive in choosing the future prime minister of the country.
Although no progress has been made in France’s search for a candidate for prime minister, the leftist New Popular Front (NFP) alliance, which won the most seats in the country’s legislative elections, has since turned its attention to agreeing a candidate. For the chairman of the Milli Majlis, which convened for the first time on Thursday.
It is a high vote that will determine the balance of power between the three main political blocs – the NFP, the presidential alliance and the far-right National Rally (RN), none of which has an absolute majority.
The Speaker of the National Assembly is the fourth-highest official in the French government and has the role of directing debate in the chamber.
They can also appoint three members of the Constitutional Council, one member of the Supreme Judicial Council and three members of the Superior Audiovisual Council.**
To be elected, a candidate must receive the votes of an absolute majority of the 577 deputies of the National Assembly in the first or second round of voting.
If not, a third round is organized and the candidate with the relative majority wins.
Why is this important?
Why is Thursday’s vote so important? He can determine the appointment of the future prime minister.
This appointment will allow us to set the first stages for potential alliances between different blocs.
If the left-wing coalition fails to elect anyone from its own party, French President Emmanuel Macron could use that as an excuse not to appoint a left-wing prime minister and say he will not represent MPs in parliament since he became president of the National Assembly. The prime minister must come from the same political party.
Therefore, 143 RN MPs and their allies can change the vote on Thursday.
In return, the RN is already looking at key positions, such as vice-presidents or the head of the Finance Committee, which will be at stake on Friday and Saturday.
Who are the potential candidates?
Cyrielle Chatelain, president of the Green Party in the National Assembly, told the press on Tuesday that NFP (left) MPs have already declared that they will do everything in their power to prevent the RN from taking key positions.
On Tuesday evening, only three candidates officially announced their candidacy for the presidency of the National Assembly.
Among them, President Yael Braun-Pivet, from the Macron camp, hopes to retain his seat thanks to the support of the more conservative right-wing Les Republicains (LR) party.
72-year-old centrist Charles de Courson also presented himself as a candidate.
On the left, Chatelain told reporters he could consider himself a “good possible candidate.”
Several other names were put on the table, including socialist Boris Vallaud and communist André Chassaigne.
The far-right RN announced on Tuesday afternoon that his deputy, Sébastien Chenou, would run, even if he had little chance of winning.