Marine Le Pen Banned from French Presidential Race After Embezzlement Conviction
French far-right leader Marine Le Pen has been sentenced to four years in prison, with two years suspended, and barred from running for public office for five years after being found guilty of embezzling European Union funds.
The verdict, delivered by a French court, is a significant blow to the National Rally (RN) leader, who had been a leading contender in the 2027 presidential race. Le Pen, 56, has run for the presidency three times but failed to secure victory. With her disqualification, the RN must now seek a new leader to carry its political ambitions forward.
Le Pen, alongside her party and over two dozen members, was accused of misappropriating more than 3.9 million euros ($6.8 million) in EU funds between 2004 and 2016. Prosecutors argued that the party created a scheme to divert European Parliament funds, intended for parliamentary aides, to pay RN staff in France.
During the trial, the prosecution presented evidence showing that Le Pen employed four party staff members, including her personal assistant and bodyguard, as European parliamentary assistants, despite them performing party-related duties. The court ruled that this constituted a “democratic bypass,” misleading both the European Parliament and voters.
“It was established that all these people were actually working for the party, and that their MEP had not assigned them any tasks,” the judge, Bénédicte de Perthuis, stated in the ruling. The court found that the RN systematically used EU funds to finance party operations, violating the bloc’s regulations.
The case originated from an anonymous tip-off received by the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) in 2014, alleging fictitious employment practices within the RN. Subsequent investigations uncovered irregularities in salaries paid to assistants, prompting further scrutiny. The European Parliament’s then-president, Martin Schulz, later referred the case to OLAF, leading to the legal proceedings against Le Pen and her associates.
The ruling has thrown the RN into turmoil as the party scrambles to replace Le Pen as its presidential candidate. Polls had shown her as a frontrunner for the 2027 election, following her efforts to reposition the party within mainstream French politics.
Le Pen has denied any wrongdoing and argued that the allegations stemmed from a narrow interpretation of parliamentary assistant roles. She maintains that the funds were used legitimately and plans to appeal the verdict.
Despite the conviction, the RN remains a formidable force in French politics, with party officials vowing to challenge the ruling and defend their leader’s legacy. However, the ban on Le Pen’s candidacy marks a pivotal moment in France’s political landscape, potentially reshaping the 2027 presidential race.
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