Marine Le Pen Found Guilty of Embezzlement, Banned from Office for Five Years
A French court has delivered a significant ruling against far-right leader Marine Le Pen, finding her guilty in an embezzlement case that could reshape the future of her political career. The court sentenced Le Pen, the head of the National Rally party (RN), to a four-year prison term, with two years to be served under house arrest and the other two years suspended. Additionally, she was immediately banned from running for office for five years, which jeopardizes her participation in the upcoming 2027 presidential election, where she is widely regarded as a frontrunner.
This ruling, issued on March 31, also implicated eight current or former members of the National Rally, all of whom had previously served as Europarliament members. Alongside them, 12 assistants tied to Le Pen and her party faced similar charges. The case revolved around the illegal siphoning off of European Union funds, intended to support parliamentary aides, to cover costs associated with RN staff who worked for the party between 2004 and 2016.
Judge Benedicte de Perthuis, in her ruling, asserted that these actions constituted deliberate embezzlement orchestrated through a systemic effort to reduce party expenses, rather than mere administrative errors. The defendants, including Le Pen, have maintained their innocence and plan to appeal the conviction. Should their appeal be unsuccessful, however, the ban on Le Pen’s ability to run for office will remain in effect.
Le Pen, who has previously placed second to President Emmanuel Macron in the 2017 and 2022 elections, has declared that her campaign for the presidency in 2027 would be her last. During the trial, she characterized the proceedings as an attack on her political career, stating that the prosecutors were aiming for 'her political death.' Le Pen left the courtroom before the announcement of her sentence, highlighting the personal and political toll of the case.
Given the rising prominence of the National Rally in French politics, this ruling may significantly impact the landscape as the nation moves toward the next presidential election cycle.
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