PARIS, FRANCE -- Thousands of protesters took to the streets across France on Saturday, responding to a call from a far-left party leader who criticized as a âpower grabâ the president's appointment of a conservative new prime minister, Michel Barnier.
The protests directly challenged French President Emmanuel Macronâs decision to bypass a prime minister from the far-left bloc following a deeply dividing âand divided â legislative election result in July. Authorities did not record a huge turnout nationwide.
The left, particularly the France Unbowed party, views Barnierâs conservative background as rejecting the electorateâs will, further intensifying the EUâs second economyâs already charged political atmosphere. Saturday's demonstrators denounced Barnierâs appointment as denying democracy, echoing France Unbowed leader Jean-Luc Melenchonâs fiery rhetoric from recent days.
In Paris, protesters gathered at Place de la Bastille and tensions ran high as police prepared for potential clashes. Some carried placards reading âWhere is my vote?â
At the head of the Parisian procession, Melenchon spoke passionately, declaring that âthe French people are in rebellion. They have entered into revolution.â
âThere will be no pause, no truce. I call you to a long-term battle,â he added.
In the southwestern city of Montauban, a rally speaker told the crowd that âthe people have been ignored.â Other protests took place is some 150 locations nationwide.
While Barnier was meeting with healthcare workers at Parisâ Necker Hospital for his first official visit as prime minister, opponents say the unrest in the streets is shaping his governmentâs future.
Barnier, who is working to assemble his Cabinet, expressed a commitment to listening to public concerns, particularly about Franceâs public services.
Jordan Bardella, leader of the far-right National Rally (RN), warned that Barnier was âunder surveillanceâ by his party as well. Bardella, speaking at the Chalons-en-Champagne fair, called for the prime minister to include his party's priorities in his agenda, particularly regarding national security and immigration.
Barnier, 73, is the oldest of the 26 prime ministers that have served modern Franceâs Fifth Republic. He replaces the youngest, Gabriel Attal, who was 34 when he was appointed just eight months ago.
Attal was forced to resign after Macronâs centrist government performed poorly in the July snap legislative elections. Macron called the election in the hopes of securing a clear mandate, but it instead produced a hung parliament, leaving the president without a legislative majority and plunging his administration into turmoil.
Attal was also Franceâs first openly gay prime minister. French media and some of Macronâs opponents, who immediately criticized Barnierâs appointment, quickly dug up that, when serving in parliament in 1981, the new prime minister had been among 155 lawmakers who voted against a law that decriminalized homosexuality.
Though Barnier brings five decades of political experience, his appointment offers no guarantee of resolving the crisis. His challenge is immense: He must form a government that can navigate a fractured National Assembly, where the political spectrum is deeply divided between the far left, far right, and Macronâs weakened centrist bloc. The outcome of the snap poll, far from providing clarity, has only served to destabilize both the country and Macronâs grip on power.
The presidentâs decision to turn to Barnier, a seasoned political operator with deep ties to the European Union, is seen as an attempt to bring stability to French politics. And Barnier, who gained prominence as the EUâs chief Brexit negotiator, has faced daunting tasks before.
Critics say Macron, elected on the promise of a break from the old political order, now finds himself battling the instability he once promised to overcome.