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Le Pen’s appeal verdict
France’s Paris appeals court is set to rule Tuesday on Marine Le Pen’s embezzlement case, a decision that could determine whether one of France’s leading presidential contenders can run in next year’s election.
Le Pen, 57, is appealing a March 2025 conviction that found her and other members of her National Rally party guilty of misusing European Parliament funds by paying party staff with money intended for EU parliamentary assistants between 2004 and 2016.
The lower court sentenced her to prison time, suspended pending appeal, and imposed a five-year ban on holding elected office, while Le Pen has denied any wrongdoing and still hopes to mount a fourth bid for the presidency.
If she is barred from running, her longtime protégé Jordan Bardella, 30, could instead become the party’s presidential candidate, reshaping the race to succeed President Emmanuel Macron.
In a combative primetime interview, Le Pen told French TV: “If I can be a candidate, I will be a candidate, provided that I am able to campaign,” as the appeals process could take about six months to reach a verdict.
Campaign constraints and rivals
The BBC reported that a Paris appeal court found Le Pen guilty of misusing €2.8m (£2.4m) in EU funds in a fake jobs scheme but ruled she could stand for the presidency while wearing a tag.
Le Pen said she would “pursue all legal avenues” to defend her innocence and appeal to the Court of Cassation, and she told French TV: “No, there isn't. I am here tonight to tell you I am a candidate for the 2027 election.”
Public prosecutors have also said they will appeal against the appeal court’s decision to reduce the sentences against Le Pen, according to the BBC.
In the hours after Tuesday’s court verdict, Le Pen was locked in talks with Bardella, as well as lawyers and party colleagues, before she and Bardella were driven to the studios of TF1 TV.
Political opponents criticized Le Pen’s decision to run despite her guilty verdict, with Othman Nasrou, secretary-general of the right-wing Republicans, telling AFP: “Her candidacy, despite her conviction, is yet another reversal that damages the French people's trust in politics.”
What’s at stake for 2027
The AP described multiple possible outcomes from the appeals court, including the possibility that it could clear Le Pen of all charges or reduce her ban on holding elected office to two years or less, which would expire before the first round of the French presidential election scheduled in April 2027.
CNN reported that after an appeals court upheld her conviction, Le Pen told broadcaster TF1 she intends to run in the French presidential election next year, saying: “There is no longer any scenario in which I could not run in 2027.”
CNN also said the court ordered her to serve one year at home with an electronic monitoring tag and effectively reduced the amount of time she is barred from running for office to just 15 months.
The BBC reported that the Court of Cassation is likely to take a few months to reach a decision, and that if it confirms Tuesday’s verdict, Le Pen could find herself having to wear an electronic tag as the election campaign moves into its most important period early next year.
In the Al Jazeera report, Le Pen said that even if the court only upholds the order for her to wear an electronic bracelet, she will not stand, arguing: “Because if I’m allowed to be a candidate but am effectively prevented from campaigning freely, then you understand that wouldn’t be possible.”
