France announces educational reforms to curb the protests, but students consider them insufficient.

A replacement of Parcoursup that changes the legal conditions of university access would require an ordinary law, not an organic law. If only the technological platform were replaced or administrative aspects compatible with current legislation were modified, a regulatory reform might suffice, without new parliamentary approval. The difference depends on the content of the reform, not the name of the system that replaces it.

1. Determine what must be changed by law

The current framework comes from Law No. 2018-166 of March 8, relating to student guidance and success, the Education Code, and its regulatory provisions. Article L. 612-3 is a central reference for access to the first university cycle.

Changing the legal admission conditions, candidates' rights, or essential obligations of universities requires modifying this framework. In contrast, the schedule, applications, and other operational modalities are developed through regulations, as shown by the 2018 Decree. A decree cannot contradict the current law.

2. Initiate the reform

There are two parliamentary routes:

• Government bill: the Executive prepares the text, obligatorily requests the opinion of the Conseil d’État, and approves it in the Council of Ministers before presenting it to Parliament. This opinion examines its legal coherence but does not replace the parliamentary decision.
• Parliamentary bill proposal: deputies or senators can present it. It is subject to admissibility rules, including financial limits on parliamentary initiatives. Consultation with the Conseil d’État is not mandatory as in the governmental route.

For a comprehensive replacement, the governmental initiative would facilitate coordinating the law with resources, digital infrastructure, and implementation schedule, although it is not the only legally possible route.

3. Examination by both chambers

The text can be presented in the National Assembly or the Senate. First, it is referred to the competent committee, where it is examined and amendments may be approved. Then it is debated and voted on in plenary session.

The chamber that receives it next also examines it in committee and plenary: it can approve it unchanged, modify it, or reject it. The successive readings between both chambers constitute the navette parlementaire. The goal is to approve an identical text.

4. Resolve a disagreement

If differences persist, a joint committee composed of deputies and senators may meet to draft a common text. The accelerated procedure allows reaching this phase sooner but does not eliminate the examination by both chambers.

If conciliation fails or its text is not approved, the Government may, complying with constitutional conditions, request that the National Assembly decide definitively. Therefore, the Senate intervenes but does not have a definitive veto over an ordinary law of these characteristics.

5. Constitutional control and implementation

Before promulgation, the law may be referred to the Conseil constitutionnel by authorized authorities or by 60 deputies or 60 senators. This prior control is not mandatory for an ordinary law. It may affect, among other issues, equality of access and candidates' guarantees; see the Council's presentation.

After promulgation and publication, the necessary decrees and orders must be approved, with corresponding transitional provisions. In summary: substantive reform, ordinary law, and regulatory development; exclusively technical replacement, possible regulatory route. Parliamentary approval of the new framework does not by itself equate to its operational implementation.

Sébastien Lecornu, as French Prime Minister, directs and coordinates the Government's educational policy, guarantees the execution of laws, and exercises the regulatory authority that corresponds to him. He does not have a personal or exclusive educational competence: his powers derive from the office and are exercised alongside the Minister of Education, respecting the attributions of Parliament, the President of the Republic, and territorial collectivities.

1. Direction and coordination of educational policy

The main basis lies in Articles 20 and 21 of the 1958 Constitution. The first assigns the Government the determination and conduct of national policy; the second establishes that the Prime Minister directs government action and guarantees the execution of laws.

In education, this allows Lecornu to set governmental priorities, coordinate their application, and resolve discrepancies between Education and other ministries, such as Finance, Interior, or Higher Education. He can arbitrate on resources, teacher hiring, inclusion, or school security, but always within the legal framework. He does not ordinarily replace the competent minister in managing centers, staff, or programs.

2. Normative development and legislative initiative

Article 21 grants him regulatory authority, with the reservation of presidential powers in Article 13. Together with Article 37, it allows developing by decree educational aspects not reserved for law. According to Article 22, the Prime Minister's acts carry, when appropriate, the countersignature of the ministers responsible for executing them.

• Bill projects: Article 39 recognizes the Prime Minister's legislative initiative. He can promote educational reforms, whose projects are deliberated in the Council of Ministers.
• Limits: Article 34 reserves fundamental principles of education to the law. Therefore, a decree cannot freely modify these principles.
• Ordinances: Article 38 allows the Government to act in legislative matters through parliamentary authorization and under constitutional conditions; it does not constitute an unlimited unilateral power.

3. Budget and political responsibility

Lecornu coordinates budget preparation and arbitrates resource distribution among ministries. In education, he can decide the governmental financing proposal and supervise its execution, but credit approval corresponds to Parliament through the finance law.

He also bears political responsibility for the Government's actions. Article 49.3 allows committing his responsibility on budget projects and, with constitutional limits, on other texts. This power may affect an educational reform but does not grant him additional material competence over education.

4. What corresponds to the minister and territorial administrations

The Minister of Education exercises sectoral competences provided in legislation and his decree of attributions, under the governmental direction of the Prime Minister. He is responsible for specifying and administering school policy: programs, exams, diplomas, teaching staff, inspection, and service organization, within state competences.

The Education Code establishes the substantive framework: national priority of education and equal opportunities —Article L111-1—, compulsory instruction, free education, and secularism. Its provisions on competence distribution reserve educational functions to the State and assign material responsibilities to municipalities, departments, and regions, especially regarding buildings, maintenance, and school equipment. Governmental direction does not eliminate these territorial competences.

5. Relationship with the President of the Republic

The President appoints the Prime Minister and, on his proposal, the ministers —Article 8—; presides over the Council of Ministers —Article 9— and signs the decrees deliberated there and ordinances —Article 13—. His political influence does not equate to an exclusive constitutional competence in education. The legal direction of government action corresponds to the Prime Minister; specialized management, to the competent minister.

The latest French presidential elections were in April 2022, in which Emmanuel Macron was re-elected against Marine Le Pen. The latest legislative elections for the National Assembly were held on June 30 and July 7, 2024: the New Popular Front obtained the highest number of seats, but no alliance reached an absolute majority.

2022 Presidential: Macron's victory

The elections were held in two rounds, on April 10 and 24, 2022. In the first, the five candidates with the highest vote percentages were:

• Emmanuel Macron: 27.85%.
• Marine Le Pen: 23.15%.
• Jean-Luc Mélenchon: 21.95%.
• Éric Zemmour: 7.07%.
• Valérie Pécresse: 4.78%.

Macron and Le Pen advanced to the second round. Mélenchon came third, 1.20 percentage points behind Le Pen, and did not participate in the final vote. Percentages for both rounds can be consulted in the French electoral archive.

In the second round, on April 24, Macron obtained 58.55% of the votes and Le Pen 41.45%. The difference was 17.10 percentage points. The result allowed Macron to retain the Presidency for a second term.

It was a new victory against the same rival as in 2017, although with a smaller margin: then Macron had obtained 66.1% and Le Pen 33.9%. As explained by Demócrata, the 2022 re-election did not translate into an absolute parliamentary majority for his coalition.

2024 Legislative: no absolute majority

The 2024 early elections renewed the 577 seats of the National Assembly. The absolute majority is 289 deputies. The first round took place on June 30 and the second on July 7.

The distribution by major alliances recorded in the consulted sources was:

• New Popular Front: 182 seats. It was the alliance with the most deputies but fell 107 short of the absolute majority.
• Ensemble!, presidential alliance: 168 seats. Finished second, without achieving a majority for Macron.
• National Rally and its allies: 143 seats. Came third by parliamentary representation.
• Other candidacies: 84 seats. Completed the Assembly, including The Republicans and candidacies of different affiliations.

These figures correspond to a broad classification by alliances. Other counts separate certain allies and independents and offer lower figures for each group. Therefore, different distributions may be found without changing the fundamental result: no force reached 289 seats. The analysis by The Conversation explains the outcome of these elections.

How to interpret both results

The main distinction is between winning the Presidency and having a majority in the Assembly. Macron won the 2022 presidential elections; the New Popular Front was the alliance with the most seats in the 2024 legislative elections. Neither result alone equates to controlling both institutions.

The early legislative elections came after Macron dissolved the Assembly following the June 2024 European elections. They did not resolve parliamentary fragmentation: they left a Chamber without an absolute majority and forced seeking support among different forces. In summary, the polls kept Macron in the Presidency but did not provide him with his own parliamentary majority.