Following his electoral triumph over the far right, French President Emmanuel Macron was inaugurated for a second term on Saturday, facing enormous challenges in foreign and domestic policy after a first term that polarized the country.
Macron was validated as the winner of the April presidential election by Constitutional Council chief Laurent Fabius in a ceremony at the Elysee Palace, and then signed the formal re-investiture document.
The event, which was attended by a few hundred people including his wife Brigitte and only surviving predecessors Francois Hollande and Nicolas Sarkozy, was rather low-key but was the first time in 20 years that a French leader was elected to a second term.
Macron has a difficult task ahead of him: executing the reforms he promised when he became France’s youngest president in 2017, as well as dealing with Russia’s aggression against Ukraine.
SECOND TERM VOWS OF MACRON
After detractors claimed the former investment banker used harsh and arrogant ways during his first term, he is signaling a more inclusive and understanding style of rule.
“I pledge to construct a more livable world, a more living France, and a stronger France,” he declared in a speech at the Elysee Palace, promising a “new approach” of governance.
To commemorate the inauguration, 21 cannon rounds will be fired from the Invalides military memorial complex, following a Middle Ages tradition.
The ceremony mirrored the re-inaugurations of Francois Mitterrand in 1988 and Jacques Chirac in 2002, the last French presidents to win a second term, with no drive down the Avenue des Champs-Elysees or long red carpet.
Macron’s second term will formally begin when the first one ends on May 13 at midnight.
PM conundrum
He is expected to continue to play a key role in efforts to end Russia’s war in Ukraine, even as he bears a great deal of pressure as a leader on the European arena, with Germany still struggling to find its feet in the post-Angela Merkel era.
On the home front, Macron must cope with the rising cost of living crisis and prepare for possible protests when he finally implements his long-awaited pension reform, raising the retirement age in France.
On April 24, Macron defeated far-right competitor Marine Le Pen in the second round of presidential elections, receiving 58.55 percent of the vote.
The ceremony takes place at a time of political upheaval in the aftermath of Macron’s election triumph, as France prepares for legislative elections in June.
Macron is anticipated to select a new prime minister to replace incumbent Jean Castex and lead a restructured government into the polls, but not until the start of his second term.
He’s suggested appointing a female politician who focuses on social responsibility, while sources suggest that overtures to leftist figures like former official Veronique Bedague and Socialist parliamentary group chief Valerie Rabault have been turned down.
“If there was an apparent answer for the Matignon (the prime minister’s home), it would have been disclosed long ago,” says the author.
AFP quoted an unnamed person close to Macron as saying.
Meanwhile, the Socialist Party, along with the Greens and Communists, is creating an unprecedented legislative coalition with Jean-Luc Melenchon’s hard-left France Unbowed (LFI).
In the first round of presidential elections, he was by far the best-performing left-wing candidate, and he is leading efforts to establish a broad alliance and launch a credible challenge to Macron.
Ensemble (Together) is a new name for pro-Macron groupings, while his own Republic on the Move party, which has struggled to build a grassroots basis, gets renamed Renaissance.