The unprecedented political situation in France since the results of the early parliamentary elections on July 7 has raised many questions. Sometimes ambiguous, the Constitution does not provide a clear answer to all the situations that are currently arising. For several weeks now, Le Monde has been trying to answer the questions that arise in the absence of a clear majority in the Assemblée Nationale.

Is there a deadline for forming a new government?

Only the French president has the power to appoint a prime minister (Article 8 of the Constitution). He is under no legal obligation to choose someone from the largest group in the Assemblée Nationale, and there is no legal deadline.

There is no established tradition for the current situation, in which there is no clear majority. There have been three periods of cohabitation, when the prime minister and president come from opposing sides (in 1986-1988 and 1993-1995 under François Mitterrand, then in 1997-2002 under Jacques Chirac). In all three, "an absolute majority in the Assemblée Nationale had always emerged from the ballot box, said Julien Boudon, professor of public law at the University of Paris-Saclay and specialist in the French Constitution. "All the president had to do was confirm the new configuration – with no room to appoint a prime minister other than the one the right or left had chosen at the time." In 2022, President Emmanuel Macron's coalition only had a relative majority, with 250 seats (289 required for an outright majority), but this group was "clearly the only one with a majority in the Assemblée" and there was no alternative.

Macron accepted the resignation of Prime Minister Gabriel Attal's government on Tuesday, July 16, but no one knows when he will name a new prime minister. He has already warned that he wants to "give the political forces a little time to build [compromises] with calm and respect for everyone." It is possible that the government which has just resigned could be kept in place to manage current affairs for the duration of the Olympic and Paralympic Games, and why not until the opening of the next ordinary session, scheduled for October 1.

Benjamin Morel, lecturer in public law at the University of Paris-Panthéon-Assas, said "this poses a real democratic problem," since a government in charge of day-to-day business cannot be overturned by the Assemblée Nationale, its resignation having already been recorded. It remains to be seen whether the president will take the risk of prolonging the period of uncertainty. Political pressure will be strong and voters, who turned out massively in the parliamentary elections, could become impatient.

Can Macron appoint a prime minister who does not come from the largest group in the Assemblée?

The president is usually forced to appoint a prime minister from the party that won the legislative elections, to avoid seeing the government toppled immediately by the Assemblée. However, this time no political group can claim an absolute majority. The left-wing parties allied within the Nouveau Front Populaire (NFP) are claiming the post of prime minister, arguing that they obtained the largest number of seats (182), ahead of the presidential camp under the label Ensemble (168) and the far-right Rassemblement National and its allies (143). NFP leaders have been meeting since July 7 with a view to proposing someone, but these negotiations have so far come to nothing. It would then be up to Macron whether or not to appoint this person as his new prime minister.

The power to appoint the prime minister rests solely with the president, who is under no legal obligation to choose a candidate from the largest group in the Assemblée Nationale.

But "if the left can agree on a name to propose to Emmanuel Macron, he'll find it hard to turn a deaf ear," reported Boudon. "The whole question is whether there is an alternative solution."

When a government resigns, how does it manage day-to-day business?

When a government resigns, the president may ask his ministers to remain in office temporarily to ensure the continuity of the state and its services, and also the essential day-to-day running of the administrations under their responsibility. No law specifically defines what a caretaker government may or may not do.

A caretaker government in charge of day-to-day business has limited powers compared with a full-fledged government. In principle, it cannot take steps of a political nature. Such a government cannot, for example, create new rights and laws for the population, or take measures that are not already provided for by existing and enacted laws. But given the scarcity of examples in the history of the French Republic, it's not always easy to anticipate what measures such a government might legally take. "The dividing line is difficult to draw, because it's a matter for the Council of State to decide," said constitutional scholar Dominique Rousseau. The Council of State has the power to challenge a decree if it deems that the measure simply exceeds the objective of maintaining the continuity of public services.

A caretaker government's powers are not limited, however, when the measures taken are of an urgent nature. "If there were a terrorist attack, there is no legal obstacle, a government in charge of day-to-day affairs could take the necessary decisions," explained Boudon.

Can MPs hold a vote of no confidence at any time to bring down a government?

In order to be introduced, a motion of no confidence, which aims to bring down a government, must be signed by one-tenth of the total membership of the Assemblée – 58 members. Currently, the radical left party La France Insoumise (LFI, 74 MPs), the Socialists (59), Macron's Renaissance (102) and the Rassemblement National (125) each have enough members to table such a motion.

To be adopted, however, the motion must be voted by at least of the chamber to pass: in other words, 289 votes, which no political group currently has. In successful, the motion of no confidence forces the prime minister to submit the government's resignation to the president.

There are two types of motion of no confidence: spontaneous and provoked. In both cases, they can only be tabled during a parliamentary session. Importantly, a motion of no confidence cannot be filed against a caretaker government.

1- The spontaneous motion of no confidence

This type of motion is tabled only on the initiative of MPs. It can only be debated in the chamber between 48 hours and five days after it is tabled. For example, former prime minister Elisabeth Borne faced a motion of no confidence, which failed, after her general policy speech when she took office in the summer of 2022.

2- The provoked motion of no confidence

This type of motion is tabled, in principle by an opposition group, after the government uses Article 49.3 of the Constitution, allowing a bill to be passed without a vote. In that case, the bill text is deemed to be adopted without a debate, unless a motion of no confidence is introduced within 24 hours. If adopted, this motion of no confidence leads to the rejection of the text and the resignation of the government.

If the motion fails, not only does the government remain in place, but the bill is adopted. For this reason, the use of Article 49.3 of the Constitution has been described by some as undemocratic.

In the entire history of the Fifth Republic, only one motion of no confidence has ever been adopted, at the initiative of MPs. That was in 1962, when a majority of them protested against the constitutional amendment providing for the election of the president of the Republic by direct universal suffrage, rather than by an electoral college. In response, President Charles de Gaulle dissolved the Assemblée. The ensuing legislative elections resulted in a landslide victory for his camp. Then prime minister Georges Pompidou remained in office.

What powers does the French president have in the event of cohabitation?

According to the Constitution, Fraance's domestic policy is entrusted to members of the government. In the event of cohabitation, the president has a more secondary role, his own powers are circumscribed. He appoints the prime minister (who must, however, have the confidence of the Assemblée), presides over the Council of Ministers (but loses influence over them), has the power to appoint the state's civil and military officials, or can dissolve the Assemblée Nationale (once a year). He can also exercise exceptional powers in the event of a "serious and immediate" threat to institutions, national independence, territorial integrity or the fulfillment of international commitments.

In terms of foreign policy, the Constitution says that the president negotiates and ratifies international treaties and accredits ambassadors. Ambiguity persists on the question of defense, because the Constitution makes the president the "head of the armed forces," the one who "presides over the councils and higher committees of national defense," while describing the prime minister as "responsible for national defense" and stating that the government "has at its disposal the administration and the armed force." This ambiguity obliges the prime minister and the president to reach a certain understanding, notably on the names of the foreign affairs and defense ministers.

Although cohabitation makes the president a leader of the opposition, he has the considerable advantage of being at the Elysée and of having a strong voice symbolically. He is also the only person with the power to sign decrees in the Council of Ministers, and enjoys a powerful ability to prove a nuisance in the face of the government.

Decrees, ordinances: Can a government bypass the Assemblée?

Without a majority, a government could be tempted to govern by decree. LFI leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon warned on July 7 that a Nouveau Front Populaire government could use this method to implement key measures in the left-wing program: repealing the postponement of the legal retirement age to 64 and raising the minimum wage to €1,600. While modifying the minimum wage would not, in principle, pose a problem, the idea of canceling the pension reform law by decree has raised questions among experts.

Decided in the Council of Ministers, decrees are a regulatory act (which lays down a rule) signed by the president and do not require parliamentary approval. The prime minister can also dispense with the president's signature by issuing a simple decree, outside the Council of Ministers. To modify or repeal a law, however, requires a legislative measure, which therefore goes through Parliament.

One of the possibilities open to a government is to govern by ordinance. This type of text (which sets out a rule) enables it to adopt measures without going through the usual legislative procedure (Assemblée Nationale and Sénat). But it does require the prior authorization of both houses of Parliament, which can be very complex without a majority. Above all, in the event of cohabitation, governing by ordinance can be all the more complicated as the president is the only person empowered to sign them. This explains what happened in July 1986, after Mitterrand refused to sign the ordinances on denationalization presented by Chirac's government, which had nevertheless obtained parliamentary authorization to legislate by ordinance. Faced with the president's refusal, Chirac had to transform the draft ordinances into a bill.

A government without a majority could also decide to use Article 49.3 of the Constitution, allowing to pass a bill without a vote. But this could expose the government to motions of no confidence, which could result in its toppling.