France Is Ungovernable. That Is Not a New Problem.
April 22, 2026 · Frisian News
France's latest political crisis shows a parliament too fragmented to pass budgets or laws. The problem runs deeper than any one election or leader.
France's parliament cannot pass a budget. For weeks, lawmakers from the left, center, and right have blocked each other's proposals. The government tried to push through spending measures without a vote. Some lawmakers walked out of talks. Macron's centrists hold roughly 160 seats in a 577-seat chamber. No coalition commands a majority. This did not start last week. It started long before Macron took office in 2017.
The French political system suffers from chronic fragmentation. The Fifth Republic's presidential structure was built for consensus, but consensus no longer exists. Voters in recent years have moved toward extremes. The National Rally on the right and hard-left parties on the left now claim large blocs of seats. The center, once France's political spine, has shrunk. Macron's party won far more seats in 2022 than it holds today. When the center collapses, governing becomes nearly impossible.
French politicians blame everyone but themselves. Macron says parliament is irresponsible. The left accuses the president of arrogance. The right demands fresh elections. None of them address the real issue: France's electoral system rewards fragmentation and punishes cooperation. Proportional representation would give smaller parties real power. The current system gives them veto power instead. A deputy from a fringe party can block the entire chamber.
Other countries face similar problems. Germany's coalition talks take months. Italy rotates governments every few years. Spain went through four elections in four years. But France has something else working against it: a strong presidency that expects to govern alone. When Macron won in 2017 and 2022, he thought he had a mandate. He did not. He had votes in a two-round system that concentrated support around him while fragmenting parliament. The system now eats itself.
France will muddle through. The government will find enough votes to pass something. The next election will produce another hung parliament. This cycle will repeat unless the French make hard choices about how they want to be governed. They have not made those choices. They probably will not.
Published April 22, 2026 · Frisian News