On Tuesday, July 7, the Paris Court of Appeal handed down its verdict in the trial for misappropriation of public funds brought against Marine Le Pen and the Rassemblement National (RN) in the European parliamentary assistants’ case. The final verdict, whilst severe, is less so than expected: the former MEP’s disqualification from holding public office is drawing to a close. Appearing on a news programme on the national channel TF1 on Tuesday evening, Marine Le Pen announced her intention to appeal to the Court of Cassation and to stand in the 2027 presidential election.
The sentence imposed on Marine Le Pen comprises three elements: a ban on holding public office, the fixed-term portion of which has now expired; a fine of 100,000 euros; and a three-year prison sentence, of which one year is to be served under electronic monitoring.
Given the current situation, the former president of the RN believes that the main obstacles to her presidential candidacy have been removed, as she is no longer barred from running for office. The remaining obstacle is the requirement to wear an electronic tag. Le Pen had previously stated that she did not wish to campaign under such conditions. But the situation has changed slightly: she has announced her intention to appeal to the Court of Cassation, which will have the effect of suspending the sentence handed down on appeal.
Speaking to the journalist who interviewed her, Le Pen appeared tired but extremely determined. Above all, she said she was “delighted that the French people are being given back the freedom to vote.”
She explained that she disagreed with Article 423.15 of the law, which deems it an offence for Members of the European Parliament to engage in national political activities, and said she intends to bring this disputed point of law before the Court of Cassation, the institution which has final jurisdiction over cases of this kind. In her view, the lifting of her ineligibility is the key outcome of the judgement handed down on Tuesday. It posed a major democratic problem by depriving the French people of the right to vote for her in the upcoming elections. Its resolution removes a key obstacle to her candidacy.
“I want to exhaust all avenues of appeal to defend my innocence in this case. My mind was made up quickly: I will not campaign whilst wearing an electronic tag, but I have the option of an appeal, which suspends the sentences; therefore, I will not be wearing a tag,” she explained to the French public before clearly and emphatically uttering the long-awaited phrase: “Tonight, I am a candidate in the presidential election.”
The journalist argued that the expectations of the ambitious RN leader, Jordan Bardella, could be significantly thwarted by the decision of the woman known as “the boss.” Le Pen, keen to defend her “ticket,” dismissed this objection out of hand. “You are too accustomed to the traditional political class, and you are making us bear the brunt of its faults. We are fighting for France, and this cause transcends us. So our personal ambitions do not come into it,” she argued.
The second part of the television interview brought to the fore the fighting spirit of this woman who is set to stand for the French presidential election for the fourth time. She described the state of the country as suffering from “Gulliver’s syndrome”: France, she explained, is a giant bound by millions of threads that hinder it and prevent it from reaching its full potential. It is up to the Rassemblement National to cut all these threads and unleash the country’s greatness.
Marine Le Pen has repeatedly emphasised that what matters most is that the French people have the final say in the upcoming election. She says she is reassured by the confidence the French people have consistently shown in the RN over recent months, despite the bleak outlook and rumours—as evidenced by the party’s popularity and its position in the polls.
“There is no longer any scenario in which I will be unable to stand in 2027,” Le Pen insisted.
There is, however, a possibility that, within a few months, the Court of Cassation may uphold the judgements of the court of first instance and the court of appeal. “We’ll see,” said the candidate, already on the starting line for a campaign that promises to be extraordinary, sidestepping the issue.
One Response
She wont do shit if/when she gets elected. Just another puppet candidate.