Marine Le Pen’s hopes of becoming the next president of France have hit a major roadblock. The leader of the far-right National Rally (RN) has been banned from running in the 2027 French presidential election, following a conviction for embezzling European funds to finance her party.
💰 Conviction and Sentence
Le Pen was found guilty of diverting more than €3 million (£2.51 million) in European Parliament funds between 2004 and 2016. She used these funds to pay staff working for the RN, rather than the European Parliament. Alongside the election ban, Le Pen was sentenced to four years in prison, with two years suspended.
However, she might not actually serve jail time. Instead, she could face alternative restrictions, such as wearing an electronic tag. Le Pen has stated that she intends to appeal the decision, meaning the sentence won’t take effect immediately.
⚖️ The Fine and the Fallout
Le Pen was also slapped with a €100,000 (£82,635) fine. Unsurprisingly, she stormed out of the courtroom before the judge had even finished delivering the sentence.
This legal drama centres around the accusation that Le Pen and 24 other officials from the National Rally used European Parliament funds to pay for party-related staff. Le Pen wasn’t alone in the case, as eight MEPs were also found guilty of embezzling EU funds.
🗳️ What’s Next for Le Pen?
With the 2027 French presidential election now off the table, Le Pen’s political future looks uncertain. She plans to appeal the sentence, so this story is far from over. It’s a significant blow to her ambitions, but the far-right politician isn’t likely to back down without a fight.
Le Pen’s ban from the election is a major setback, but it remains to be seen how this scandal will affect her party and her political career in the long term. For now, her dreams of running for president in 2027 are firmly out of reach.
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