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President Emmanuel Macron has requested Sébastien Lecornu to return as head of government only four days after he stepped down, triggering a stretch of political upheaval and political turmoil.

Macron made the announcement on Friday evening, following gathering key political groups in one place at the presidential palace, excluding the figures of the political extremes.

Lecornu's return shocked many, as he declared on television only two days ago that he was not interested in returning and his role had concluded.

Doubts remain whether he will be able to assemble a cabinet, but he will have to hit the ground running. The new prime minister faces a cut-off on the start of the week to submit financial plans before the National Assembly.

Political Challenges and Fiscal Demands

The Élysée said the president had given him the duty of creating a administration, and Macron's entourage implied he had been given “carte blanche” to make decisions.

The prime minister, who is one of the president's key supporters, then issued a long statement on an online platform in which he consented to responsibly the mission assigned by the president, to do everything to secure a national budget by the December and respond to the common issues of our fellow citizens.

Political divisions over how to bring down France's national debt and balance the books have led to the fall of several leaders in the past twelve months, so his task is daunting.

France's public debt in the past months was close to 114% of economic output (GDP) – the third largest in the eurozone – and this year's budget deficit is projected to hit over five percent of GDP.

Lecornu stated that no one can avoid the need of fixing the nation's budget. With only 18 months before the completion of his mandate, he advised that prospective ministers would have to put on hold their presidential ambitions.

Ruling Amid Division

What makes it even harder for the prime minister is that he will face a parliamentary test in a National Assembly where Macron has no majority to support him. Macron's approval hit a record low this week, according to a survey that put his public backing on just 14%.

Jordan Bardella of the far-right National Rally, which was not invited of the president's discussions with political chiefs on Friday, remarked that the prime minister's return, by a president increasingly isolated at the official residence, is a poor decision.

They would quickly propose a challenge against a struggling administration, whose only reason for being was avoiding a vote, Bardella added.

Building Alliances

Lecornu at least is aware of the challenges ahead as he tries to build a coalition, because he has already devoted 48 hours recently talking to political groups that might support him.

On their own, the centrist parties lack a majority, and there are disagreements within the traditionalists who have helped prop up the administration since he failed to secure enough seats in recent polls.

So he will seek socialist factions for possible backing.

To gain leftist support, Macron's team indicated the president was thinking of postponing to part of his highly contentious pension reforms enacted last year which extended working life from the early sixties.

That fell short of what progressive chiefs desired, as they were hoping he would appoint a prime minister from their camp. Olivier Faure of the leftist party stated “since we've not been given any guarantees, we won't give any guarantee” in a vote of confidence.

Fabien Roussel from the Communists stated following discussions that the left wanted substantive shifts, and a prime minister from the central bloc would not be accepted by the French people.

Environmental party head Marine Tondelier expressed shock Macron had provided few concessions to the left, adding that outcomes would be negative.