Picks seen as strategic choice for parliamentary majority

French President Emmanuel Macron has unveiled his 22-member Cabinet with ministers from the political left, right and centre.

Second in command after the centre-right Prime Minister, Edouard Philippe, is long-time Partie Socialist member and Lyon mayor Gerard Collomb, who supported Mr. Macron’s presidency. Another prominent Socialist appointment is that of former Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, who will now take over the foreign affairs portfolio.

Centrist Sylvie Goulard, a Member of the European Parliament, was given defence, while another centrist, leader of the Modem party and three-time presidential candidate, Francois Bayrou, has been appointed Justice Minister.

In addition to appointing 11 women in the list of 22 ministers and choosing members from civil society and the government, Mr. Macron’s cabinet picks are being seen as an attempt to transcend the left-right divide, a theme he reiterated through his campaign.

Reaching out

They are also strategic, with Mr. Macron, a former Socialist Economy Minister, reaching out to the moderate right of the Les Republicains (LR) party in order to get their support in the National Assembly, which will be reconstituted in June following elections.

Notable in this regard are the appointments of Republican Bruno La Maire, former Agriculture Minister during the Nicolas Sarkozy presidency, as Economy Minister, and Gerald Darmanin, an LR functionary, as Budget Minister. The Prime Minister, who heads the government on the direction of the President, must, by law, have the support of a majority in Parliament. Mr. Macron’s own La Republique en Marche movement is fielding candidates for the elections— more than 400 of whom have been chosen.

But having a cabinet from across the spectrum makes it likely that Mr. Macron will garner support for his programme from both sides of the aisle, in the event that his party fails to secure a majority by itself.

Other notable picks are Nicolas Hulot, an environmental activist as Environmental Transitions Minister and Laura Flessel, a black Olympic fencing champion as Sports Minister. Paris has bid for the 2024 Olympics.

The new French cabinet is expected to convene for the first time on Thursday.