The "new world" is gone. Under pressure from all sides to appoint a prime minister and to put an end to the political crisis started by his decision to dissolve the Assemblée Nationale, Emmanuel Macron put the next part of his second term in the hands of Michel Barnier, from the conservative Les Républicains (LR), on Thursday, September 5. Until late morning, Macron was still hesitating between Barnier and former Socialist prime minister Bernard Cazeneuve, two embodiments of the "old world" and the "old parties" long criticized by Macron's supporters.

Looking to avoid the risk of the next government being immediately toppled by the Assemblée Nationale, the president had floated the name of the former European commissioner earlier in the summer. However, it was only after rejecting Cazeneuve on the left, Xavier Bertrand on the right and the civil society option of Thierry Beaudet, president of the Economic, Social and Environmental Council, that Macron seriously considered Barnier. On Wednesday morning, Macron's chief of staff Alexis Kohler, a friend of Barnier, reached out to him. That afternoon, Barnier cycled to the Elysée Palace for his first one-on-one meeting with Macron.

The Gaullist has benefited from the goodwill of the far-right Rassemblement National (RN), which has decided to give him a chance as the new prime minister. He "seems to meet at least the first criterion we had asked for, which is to say someone who is respectful of the different political forces," Marine Le Pen said after Barnier's appointment. "He is a man who has never been outrageous in the way he has spoken about the Rassemblement National, who has never ostracized the RN, he is a man of discussion," the leader of the far-right lawmakers further stressed. Barnier's call for a moratorium on immigration before the 2022 presidential election, when he was eyeing the presidency, did not leave Le Pen unmoved. She expressed satisfaction in not having "for once," "a crazy immigrationist" as prime minister.

"This appointment is justified by the stability of a government suspended on the benevolence of the RN," worried lawmaker Sacha Houlié, who is now an independent after having left Macron's party. "Marine Le Pen is going to hold Barnier at gunpoint," warned an adviser to a resigning minister.

The president's entourage acknowledged that the Barnier option had been discussed beforehand with the RN, as well as other political forces, and faced no risk of an immediate vote of no confidence in the Assemblée Nationale. In contrast, the RN had promised an "automatic" vote of no confidence for both Bertrand and Cazeneuve.

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