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The French leader has asked Sébastien Lecornu to resume duties as French prime minister a mere four days after he resigned, sparking a stretch of intense uncertainty and political turmoil.

The president declared late on Friday, following gathering leading factions in one place at the Élysée Palace, excluding the leaders of the far right and far left.

The decision to reinstate him came as a surprise, as he declared on television only two days ago that he was not interested in returning and his task was complete.

Doubts remain whether he will be able to assemble a cabinet, but he will have to act quickly. He faces a deadline on the start of the week to present the annual budget before the National Assembly.

Political Challenges and Budgetary Strains

The presidency said the president had “tasked [Lecornu] with forming a government”, and those close to the president indicated he had been given complete freedom to make decisions.

The prime minister, who is one of Macron's closest allies, then issued a comprehensive announcement on an online platform in which he accepted as an obligation the mission entrusted to me by the president, to do everything to secure a national budget by the December and address the common issues of our fellow citizens.

Partisan conflicts over how to bring down the country's public debt and balance the books have led to the ouster of two of the past three prime ministers in the past twelve months, so his task is enormous.

The nation's debt recently was nearly 114 percent of gross domestic product – the number three in the euro area – and the annual fiscal gap is estimated to amount to over five percent of economic output.

The premier said that no one can avoid the necessity of fixing government accounts. With only 18 months before the end of Macron's presidency, he advised that anyone joining his government would have to set aside their aspirations for higher office.

Ruling Amid Division

What makes it even harder for Lecornu is that he will face a parliamentary test in a National Assembly where Macron has is short of votes to back him. The president's popularity reached its lowest point recently, according to a survey that put his approval rating on 14%.

The far-right leader of the right-wing group, which was left out of Macron's talks with political chiefs on the end of the week, said that the prime minister's return, by a president increasingly isolated at the official residence, is a “bad joke”.

His party would immediately bring a challenge against a doomed coalition, whose main motivation was dreading polls, he continued.

Building Alliances

The prime minister at least is aware of the challenges ahead as he tries to build a coalition, because he has already spent two days this week meeting with factions that might participate in his administration.

On their own, the moderate factions cannot form a government, and there are splits within the conservative Republicans who have assisted Macron's governments since he lost his majority in the previous vote.

So Lecornu will consider progressive groups for possible backing.

In an attempt to court the left, Macron's team indicated the president was evaluating a pause to part of his divisive pension reforms implemented recently which raised the retirement age from the early sixties.

It was insufficient of what progressive chiefs desired, as they were anticipating he would choose a premier from the left. The Socialist leader of the leftist party said lacking commitments, they would withhold backing for the premier.

Fabien Roussel from the Communists said after meeting the president that the progressive camp wanted substantive shifts, and a premier from the president's centrist camp would not be supported by the French people.

Greens leader the Green figure expressed shock the president had given minimal offers to the left, adding that the situation would deteriorate.