France’s President Emmanuel Macron denies plans to step down to prompt a fresh election

FRANCE’S President Macron’s office has announced that he has no plans to give up his position in order to spark an election after rumours circulated it was on the cards.

The French press reported that according to a source close to the president he had surprised a group of his party’s donors during a video conference two weeks ago with the revelation.

The source claimed that Macron said, “I’m sure to win because there’s no competition,” in a discussion of an aim to strengthen his authority as the country comes out of its coronavirus lockdown and to catch the opposition off guard.

Last month, the President’s ‘Republic on the Move’ party lost seats in parliament after MPs left to create independent parties.

His office has officially stated that “We deny this report. The president never suggested his resignation,” and added, “He never took part in a videoconference with donors.”

The ‘Republic on the Move’ could suffer humiliation in the municipal elections on June 28, as opinion polls show that candidates will fail to win over Paris and other major cities. It has also been suggested that there may be a reshuffle of the cabinet as the President tries new tactics for his last two years in power.

Macron will address that nation on television this Sunday, in his fourth appearance since the beginning of the health pandemic.