According to several opinion polls published by French media, the majority of French citizens support the early resignation of President Emmanuel Macron against the backdrop of the deep political crisis in the country.
73% of those who participated in a Toluna-Harris Interactive poll would support such a move by the head of state, while 76% blame him primarily for the political situation that led to the resignation of Prime Minister Sébastien Le Corneille. According to RTL radio, which commissioned the poll, the French also blame the president for the crises that followed the resignations of previous prime ministers Michel Barnier and François Bayrou.
Similar results were also reported in surveys conducted by the French Institute of Public Opinion (IFOP) for LCI, Elabe for BFMTV and Odoxa-BackBone Consulting for Le Figaro. 62%, 51% and 70% of respondents, respectively, are in favor of the resignation of the head of state as the best option for resolving the political crisis. Each of the polls surveyed 1,000 residents over 18 years old.
As an alternative, 66% of IFOP respondents are considering dissolving the National Assembly (the lower house of parliament) and holding early parliamentary elections, with 53% confident that the president will do just that in the coming months. In the Odoxa-BackBone Consulting poll, 60% of respondents support dissolving parliament, while in the Elabe poll only 42% support such a move.
French Prime Minister Sébastien Le Corneille resigned to Macron amid criticism from the opposition the day after the announcement of the new government, in which 13 of the 18 seats went to members of the previous cabinet. On the evening of October 6, the Elysee Palace announced that Macron had instructed Le Corneille to hold new talks with all political forces by Wednesday "to define a platform for action and for the stability of the country." If those talks fail, he has promised to "take responsibility" for future decisions, according to media reports citing people close to the French leader.