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President Emmanuel Macron has asked Sébastien Lecornu to come back as the nation's premier just days after he stepped down, causing a week of intense uncertainty and crisis.

The president stated late on Friday, shortly after meeting leading factions together at the Élysée Palace, omitting the figures of the far right and far left.

The decision to reinstate him shocked many, as he declared on broadcast recently that he was not “chasing the job” and his task was complete.

There is uncertainty whether he will be able to form a government, but he will have to act quickly. He faces a cut-off on Monday to present the annual budget before parliament.

Leadership Hurdles and Budgetary Strains

The Élysée said the president had assigned him to build a cabinet, and Macron's entourage implied he had been given “carte blanche” to make decisions.

The prime minister, who is one of Macron's closest allies, then released a long statement on social media in which he agreed to take on as an obligation the mission assigned by the president, to strive to provide France with a budget by the December and respond to the daily concerns of our countrymen.

Partisan conflicts over how to bring down government borrowing and balance the books have caused the fall of multiple premiers in the last year, so his mission is immense.

The nation's debt recently was close to 114% of economic output (GDP) – the third largest in the eurozone – and current shortfall is expected to hit over five percent of economic output.

The premier stated that “no-one will be able to shirk” the need of restoring France's public finances. With only 18 months before the end of Macron's presidency, he cautioned that prospective ministers would have to delay their presidential ambitions.

Leading Without Support

Compounding the challenge for Lecornu is that he will face a vote of confidence in a National Assembly where the president has is short of votes to endorse his government. Macron's approval reached its lowest point in the latest survey, according to research that put his public backing on just 14%.

Jordan Bardella of the far-right National Rally, which was left out of Macron's talks with political chiefs on Friday, commented that the decision, by a president “more than ever isolated and disconnected” at the official residence, is a poor decision.

His party would quickly propose a vote of no confidence against a struggling administration, whose main motivation was fear of an election, he continued.

Building Alliances

The prime minister at least understands the obstacles he faces as he tries to build a coalition, because he has already devoted 48 hours lately talking to political groups that might support him.

By themselves, the moderate factions lack a majority, and there are disagreements within the right-leaning party who have supported the administration since he lost his majority in the previous vote.

So Lecornu will look to progressive groups for potential support.

In an attempt to court the left, officials hinted the president was thinking of postponing to portions of his divisive social security adjustments implemented recently which raised the retirement age from 62 up to 64.

The offer was inadequate of what socialist figures hoped for, as they were anticipating he would select a prime minister from their side. Olivier Faure of the leftist party stated “since we've not been given any guarantees, we won't give any guarantee” to back the prime minister.

The Communist figure from the left-wing party stated following discussions that the left wanted substantive shifts, and a prime minister from the moderate faction would not be supported by the public.

Environmental party head the Green figure said she was “stunned” the president had given minimal offers to the progressives, adding that outcomes would be negative.