PARIS, Dec. 6 (Xinhua) -- French President Francois Holland on Tuesday appointed Bernard Cazeneuve, current interior minister, as the new prime minister to replace Manuel Valls as the latter decided to quit the job, according to the Elysee.

Valls announced his candidacy for the left primary in preparation for the 2017 presidential election on Monday in Evry, a commune in the suburb of Paris, proposing a new path for "an independent France uncompromising on its values." He presented his resignation to Holland earlier Tuesday.