French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu has survived two confidence motions, just days after he appointed his new government in time to submit a draft budget to parliament in a bid to end the political turmoil that has gripped the country for months.

A motion sponsored by Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally and its allies was defeated on Thursday, receiving the backing of just 144 lawmakers in the 577-seat National Assembly.

Just moments before, a motion tabled by far-left France Unbowed gained support from 271 lawmakers, 18 short of the 289 needed for a majority.

The votes followed Lecornu’s decision Tuesday to back suspending a divisive 2023 pension reform , in a bid to keep his cabinet afloat long enough to pass the much-needed 2026 austerity budget by the end of this year.

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