A nationwide protest movement is taking shape this Monday, September 8, 2025, with demonstrations for François Bayrou's departure being held in front of town halls across France. These rallies, dubbed"pots de départ", are taking place on the very day of the vote of confidence in the National Assembly, against a backdrop of high political tension surrounding the 2026 budget.
The call to demonstrate is rooted in opposition to the Bayrou government's €44 billion savings plan. The vote of confidence will put an end to the Bayrou government. " This will be a victory for the people! And we will celebrate it everywhere in France, in front of all town halls, with a great popular party, Bayrou's farewell party " proclaim the organizers in their call published on militant platforms.
In the Paris region, over 35 communes are mobilizing this Monday evening in a demonstration on a scale never seen before. Seine-Saint-Denis is leading the charge, with nine towns involved: Saint-Denis (6pm in front of the town hall, with a general assembly), Bagnolet (6pm with a casserolade, followed by a local AGM), Pantin (6pm, with preparations for the day of the 10th), Les Lilas (6pm), Livry-Gargan (7:30pm), Noisy-le-Sec (6:30pm), Montreuil (6:30pm, with a procession), Aubervilliers (6pm, place du marché) and Sevran (7pm, place Gaston Bussière, with a local AGM).
Paris is mobilizing in five arrondissements with coordinated meetings: 14th arrondissement (6pm start of rally/casserolade), 15th arrondissement (6pm), 18th arrondissement (7:30pm in front of town hall, metro Jules Joffrin with local AGM), 19th arrondissement (6:30pm in front of town hall, place Armand Carrel) and 20th arrondissement (7pm in front of town hall, metro Gambetta).
Essonne stands out for its exceptional mobilization, with fifteen communes involved. At 6pm in front of their respective town halls: Massy, Palaiseau, Évry, Étampes, Les Ulis and Orsay. Brétigny will hold its rally at 6pm in front of the RER station. The 6.30pm rendezvous is in Dourdan (in front of the Mairie) and Draveil (in front of the Centre Administratif). At 7pm, Chilly-Mazarin (in front of the Cité administrative, place de la Libération) and Vigneux-sur-Seine (place du 14 juillet). Finally, Montgeron (7.30pm) and Sainte-Geneviève-des-Bois (8pm) round off the day's action in the Essonne region.
The Val-de-Marne region will be taking part, with Villejuif (6pm in front of the town hall, with an alternative location at the Bourse du Travail in case of rain). Seine-et-Marne is joined by Torcy (7pm in front of the sous-préfecture, 7 rue Gérard Philippe), Fontainebleau (7pm in front of the town hall) and Chelles (8pm in front of the town hall, rue Eterlet side). The Hauts-de-Seine are also taking part, with Bagneux (7.30pm in front of the town hall), the Yvelines with Mantes (6pm at the station) and the Val-d'Oise with Argenteuil (7.30pm in the park in front of the town hall).
François Bayrou has announced that on September 8, he will place the responsibility of his government before the National Assembly, meeting in extraordinary session. This vote of confidence concerns his general policy statement on the recovery of public finances and his 44-billion-euro savings plan.
For the government to survive, a simple majority of votes cast is required. In concrete terms, to remain in power, the government must obtain more votes "for" than "against". However, the oppositions already total 330 votes against, out of an Assembly currently made up of 574 MPs, compared with 210 seats for the groups supporting the executive.
The outcome of the vote therefore seems compromised for François Bayrou. François Bayrou's government could well be the first in the Fifth Republic to fall as a result of a vote of confidence rejected by the National Assembly. The session will start at 3pm in the Chamber, with the Prime Minister's speech followed by speeches from the parliamentary groups.
These "farewell parties" are just a prelude to the mobilizations planned for the following days. "On the 8th, we'll be celebrating Bayrou's departure. On the 10th, we'll celebrate Macron's!" say the organizers, who are calling for a national "Let's Block Everything" day on September 10, with strikes and blockades in many sectors.
This mobilization sequence reveals the extent of the rejection of the government's austerity plan by part of public opinion. Demonstrators are denouncing the cost-cutting measures affecting public services and calling for a political alternative. These rallies also aim to "debate, imagine and propose" alternatives, because "we need to create the alternative we want to see".
In the rest of France, mobilization is spreading massively. In Besançon, the meeting is set for Monday September 8 at 8pm in front of the town hall. In Normandy, Rouen, Le Havre and Dieppe are calling for rallies at 6pm in front of town halls, while Évreux is organizing a rally at 7pm. The Grand-Est region is mobilizing, with dozens of towns and cities involved, from Metz to Strasbourg.
The irony of these early "farewell parties" contrasts with the seriousness of the country's institutional crisis. September 8, 2025 promises to be a decisive day, between parliamentary debates in the National Assembly and expressions of popular protest in front of town halls across France. The future of the Bayrou government is at stake in a few hours, in a tense political climate that illustrates the difficulties of governing without an absolute majority.
