The French leader faced two no-confidence votes amid a political uproar over a former bodyguard and plunging approval ratings. The motions had been brought forward by both conservative and Socialist lawmakers.
The government comfortably won the largely symbolic votes in France's lower house of parliament, where French President Emmanuel Macron's centrist party enjoys a large majority.
Macron's ex-bodyguard Alexandre Benalla was caught on video beating a male demonstrator during May Day protests and dragging away a woman while wearing a police armband — usually worn by plainclothes officers — and a police helmet, even though he is not a police officer.
Benalla was fired last week, but opposition leaders criticized the government's reaction as too slow. Last week, Macron said he was proud to have hired Benalla, whom he described as a "devoted" employee who had "taken an unusual path" professionally.
The opposition right-wing Republicans party, which brought one of the two motions, also took aim at Macron's refusal to comment on the incident for several days. Christian Jacob, who introduced the motion, accused Macron of displaying arrogance in his response, and of displaying "monarchical leanings."
A second motion was put forward by the Socialist Party.
Macron's low approval ratings appear to have taken a further hit from the Benalla scandal despite France's World Cup winImage: picture alliance/dpa/Russian Presidential Press and Information Office/A. Nikolsky
Plunging ratings
Macron's approval ratings sank to below 50 percent in May — down from a peak of 59 percent just after he took office last year. In June they plunged to 40 percent, according to a Harris Interactive poll.
The president's ratings improved slightly in July, according to Harris, a month that was also marked by France's victory at World Cup in Russia. However, a second poll, published on Sunday by French newspaper Le Journal du Dimanche showed that Macron's popularity slipped to a new low of 39 percent in July.
Confidence votes are fairly common in France, yet only one government in the country's 60-year-old Fifth Republic has been brought down by one: that of Georges Pompidou in 1962.
The French president is leaving his mark on the cultural scene, making bold suggestions for the future of French and European culture. DW takes a look as Macron receives the Charlemagne Prize for EU unity in Germany.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/P. Stollarz
Honored for his European vision
On May 10, French President Emmanuel Macron received the Charlemagne Prize for European Unity in the German city of Aachen. The prize's board of directors said they chose to honor Macron "in recognition of his vision of a new Europe" and his "decisive stance" against nationalism and isolationism. Since entering office one year ago, Macron has unabashedly pushed for European cohesion and EU reform.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/I. Fassbender
Charlemagne, father of Europe
The city of Aachen's Charlemagne Prize is named after the important medieval ruler who became the first Holy Roman Emperor (747-814). Under his leadership the Frankish Empire expanded to become a great power, abosrbing parts of present-day Germany. France and Germany are not the only entities to claim him as a forefather; during his lifetime, he was known as "Pater Europae," or "Father of Europe."
Image: picture alliance/dpa/R. Goldmann
Keynote speech at the Sorbonne
Macron delivered his message to the perfect audience when he spoke to students at the Sorbonne University in Paris in September 2017. In a speech focused on the EU, he emphasized the advantages of Europe's many different languages. Macron, who speaks English fluently, also said he would like to see every European master at least two European languages by the age of 24.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/L. Marin
Supporting cultural education
It was one of Macron's central campaign promises: after turning 18, French youths will receive a one-off payment of €500 ($594) from the French state. Known as a "Culture Pass," the money is supposed to help the teens take advantage of cultural offerings according to their own preferences — whether this means a Spotify subscription, a trip to Barcelona or season tickets to the theater.
Image: AFP/Getty Images/L. Marin
Honored by the literary world
The president was the guest of honor at the opening of the Frankfurt Book Fair in October 2017, which focused on French culture, literature and language. In his speech, Macron underlined the very positive literary relations between his home nation and Germany. Both countries would benefit from one another's literary output for centuries, he said.
Image: picture-alliance/SvenSimon/E. Kremser
Mona Lisa on tour?
Leonardo da Vinci's famous oil painting may get lent out to a Louvre branch in Lens, northern France, as part of Macron's push to decentralize French culture. If that actually happens, the Paris Louvre would lose its daily horde of visitors seeking to get a glimpse of the famous mysteriously smiling woman. In addition, simply transporting the painting would cost some €35 million ($41.6 million).
Image: imago/imagebroker
African cultural heritage
In November 2017 Macron gave a speech in Burkina Faso in which he called for European nations to return cultural heritage pieces that had been obtained during the colonial era. His words unleashed heated debate in Paris and Berlin. Despite his urging, the Berlin Humboldt Forum cultural center (above), set to open in 2019, said it would still include some 75,000 African exhibits in its collection.
