PARIS: France’s far-right leader Marine Le Pen said Wednesday she would thwart all action by any new government, throwing into doubt Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu’s ability to solve the country’s deepening political crisis with a coalition cabinet.
President Emmanuel Macron is facing the worst domestic crisis of his mandate, with the clock ticking down to a deadline Wednesday evening for a working government to be formed.
France has been mired in political deadlock ever since Macron took the gamble last year of snap elections that he hoped would consolidate power — but ended instead in a hung parliament and more seats for the far right.
Le Pen’s far-right National Rally — the single biggest party in parliament — has urged Macron to call new snap polls, or resign.
On Wednesday, she pledged to make impossible the life of any new cabinet.
“I vote against everything,” the three-time presidential candidate said, after her group refused to take part in talks to end the crisis.
Speaking at a livestock fair in central France, she compared French political life to a “rodeo”.
Their idea is “how long can I hold on while the horse tries to throw me off?” the 57-year-old said.
Le Pen’s anti-immigration party senses its best ever chance of winning power in the next presidential elections due in 2027, with Macron barred from running.