This attitude is evidenced by the fact that on October 10 he again accepted the mission of forming a government, although the first one ended in failure after less than a month. Lecornu said on Friday that he accepted it out of a sense of duty. On Wednesday, he made it clear that his mission was over and he was not running for the position.
Lecornu was born on June 11, 1986 in Eaubonne. At the age of 16, he joined the right-wing Popular Movement Union in Vernon – a city whose mayor he became in 2014 (at the age of 27), which was his dream. Right after graduating from high school, in 2005, he became an assistant to one of the MPs. It was one of the numerous functions he later held as the youngest person to hold such a position. He was, among others, the youngest president of the Eure department (in 2015), and then – one of the youngest ministers in the government of Prime Minister Eduard Philippe.
Until recently, he was the only minister to remain in all governments since the beginning of President Macron's first term. Before he was appointed prime minister for the first time, he was little known to the public. Cautious, discreet, able to maneuver skillfully, he became a key person among the president's associates – the daily “Le Monde” described him in September.
His first efforts to form a government ended unexpectedly on October 6. Several hours after announcing the composition of the government, Lecornu resigned amid tensions with the right-wing Republican (LR) party regarding the division of positions. Immediately later, however, he undertook last-chance talks with political parties regarding a new cabinet. On September 8, he announced that he believed there was a chance for an agreement because the majority of parties did not want to dissolve parliament and wanted the budget bill to be adopted before the end of the year.
However, his second mission promises to be just as difficult as the first. Even some politicians from Macron's camp believed that after three center-right governments, the president should propose a prime minister from a different political option.
In the past, Lecorn's skills were demonstrated in 2019, during the great debate called by Macron to resolve the crisis related to the “yellow vest” protests. Lecornu was one of the organizers of these debates, which were a success in his department. From 2022, the president entrusted him with diplomatic tasks – for example, in 2023, Lecornu went to the Middle East. As the Minister of Defense, in recent years he very often accompanied the head of state on foreign trips.
In 2022, Lecornu was tasked with developing a new seven-year defense budget within a year and having it adopted by parliament, which was an extremely difficult task given the balance of power in the National Assembly. Then his competences and negotiation skills were appreciated by political parties and the budget was adopted almost unanimously. He was also a well-regarded defense minister.
