France's Leftist Coalition Proposes Lucie Castets for Prime Minister

France's New Popular Front coalition, which recently secured the largest number of parliamentary seats, has proposed Lucie Castets, a financial crime specialist, for the position of prime minister to President Macron. Castets, despite her extensive experience in finance, lacks a background in party politics and is largely unknown to the public.

France's leftist New Popular Front coalition, which recently won the largest number of seats in parliament, has proposed financial crime expert Lucie Castets as its candidate for prime minister to President Emmanuel Macron.

Castets, currently a director of finance and purchasing at Paris city hall, graduated from France's elite Ecole Nationale d'Administration in 2013. Although she has no prior party political experience and is relatively unknown to the public, her background in fighting financial crime and tax fraud has garnered the coalition's full support.

In a statement to AFP, Castets expressed her honor at being proposed and vowed to work towards reversing Macron's recent pension reforms if appointed. Her LinkedIn profile highlights her expertise in combating money laundering and terrorism financing, with previous roles at the Financial Action Task Force, French treasury, and the World Bank.

The coalition, formed by the hard-left France Unbowed, the Socialists, the Greens, and the Communists, has been debating over the prime ministerial candidate for weeks. Despite securing the right to propose a successor to outgoing PM Gabriel Attal, the coalition lacks a majority to form a government.

President Macron's office has yet to respond to the proposal. Meanwhile, France remains in parliamentary deadlock, with the current government expected to function in a caretaker capacity throughout the summer.

(With inputs from agencies.)