This July 7, the leader of the French far-right Marine Le Pen will know the result of her appeal, a crucial ruling that will determine whether she can run in the 2027 presidential elections. The sentence in the first instance included four years in prison and five years of disqualification from holding public office for embezzlement of European Parliament funds.

First modification: 07/03/2026 - 22:00 Last modification: 07/05/2026 - 20:54

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The Le Pen surname has been inextricably linked to the public life of France for the last five decades. Since 1974, and with the exception of 1981, it has appeared, with greater or lesser success, on all presidential election ballots in the European country, led by Jean-Marie, first, and later by his daughter Marine.

But that could change if this July 7, the Court of Appeal ratifies the disqualification of the leader of the far-right National Rally party (RN, for its acronym in French), after a court in the first instance found her guilty of embezzling funds from the European Parliament.

Le Pen, who defends her innocence and has denounced a "witch hunt" against her, said on Wednesday in an interview with the French channel LCI that "fear has no place" in the face of the possible decision, although she acknowledged that an unfavorable ruling would leave her with "a feeling of injustice."

Read alsoCan the verdict against Marine Le Pen put an end to her political career?

What is the "fake jobs" scheme for which Le Pen was convicted?

Specifically, the accusation maintains that Marine Le Pen led a scheme to divert funds intended for the salaries of assistants in the European Parliament to pay employees of her political party, a practice that would have extended between 2004 and 2016.

It is worth clarifying that, although MEPs receive funds to cover their expenses, including to pay their employees, these cannot be used for party activities.

The first indications of the case date back to 2013, when the French investigative media Mediapart revealed that Le Pen had hired two senior officials from her party, then called the National Front (FN), as parliamentary advisors.

Investigators later discovered that these types of hires were not isolated cases, but part of a broader system of "fake jobs."

For that reason, and after a seven-year investigation period, Le Pen was prosecuted in 2023 along with more than two dozen other defendants for the alleged misuse of money allocated by the European Union, charges that, from the beginning, she and her party denied.

What is the 2025 ruling, which was appealed by Le Pen?

On March 31, 2025, the Paris Correctional Court convicted Marine Le Pen after considering that she had "perfected" a system implemented by her father, with her being the central figure in a plot to embezzle more than 4 million euros of European funds.

The ruling dictated a four-year prison sentence (two suspended, and two under house arrest), a five-year disqualification from standing for elective office, with immediate effect, and a fine of 100,000 euros.

Similarly, the court fined the National Group €2 million, half of which was suspended, while eight former members of the European Parliament and twelve parliamentary assistants also received sentences.

The verdict was an earthquake for Le Pen and for French public life, and was immediately appealed by the leader of the extreme right, with the hope of being able to run for the fourth time in the presidential elections, with polls that place her as a favorite in the race for 2027.

What is Le Pen's defense and what is the prosecution asking for?

From the beginning, Le Pen and her allies have described the case as a "witch hunt", a concept that was also raised by international associates of the French far-right leader, such as US President Donald Trump or former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, also investigated and convicted in different judicial proceedings.

However, Le Pen's discursive stance has been modified based on the judicial results. At the first trial, the head of RN was combative, arguing that the money had been used legitimately and that the prosecution had applied an overly restrictive definition of what the duties of a parliamentary assistant are.

That was interpreted by the judges as a lack of remorse on the part of Le Pen and the other defendants, which led to their immediate disqualification from running for public office.

In the appeal process, Le Pen did not abandon the essence of her defense – denying the charges and raising the idea of ​​a conspiracy against her – but adopted a less confrontational tone.

"If a crime was committed, I want the court to understand that we did not have the slightest intention of having done anything wrong," he said in one of his judicial depositions.

Read alsoMarine Le Pen's appeal ruling: what scenarios are possible for the presidential elections?

The Attorney General's Office has requested that Le Pen's conviction be upheld – and that of the other eleven defendants who have appealed the sentence – because "she was the instigator, after her father, of a system that allowed the diversion" of millions of euros.

However, the request is a slightly mitigated ruling: the prosecution requests that of the four years in prison, only one is final and can be served with an electronic bracelet; and requires five years of ineligibility, but without provisional execution, which means that it does not take effect until all appeals have been exhausted.

How would a ratification of the conviction alter the French political landscape?

Although Le Pen would have ten days to present an appeal to the Court of Cassation if the ruling were unfavorable to her, the far-right leader has already hinted that her political future will be decided on July 7.

To have any chance of standing in the elections scheduled for April 18, 2027, Le Pen would need the disqualification to be reduced to two years or less. Similarly, in last Wednesday's interview with LCI, he made it clear that he would not be able to campaign if he had to wear an electronic bracelet.

"If the objective is to allow me to be a candidate, but in reality to prevent me from carrying out a completely free campaign, you will understand that this will not be possible," Le Pen stressed, remarking that "when one is a presidential candidate, one must have complete freedom of movement."

"I cannot depend on a magistrate to authorize me to go to a rally in Romorantin or to go to a market in Hénin-Beaumont," resigned the far-right leader, who, regardless of her political future, assured that "no matter what happens, I will continue fighting the battle for my ideas."

In this context, if she fails to be a candidate, Le Pen has already anointed Jordan Bardella, the young and rising face of the French far-right, as the RN candidate. With no possibility of reelection for Emmanuel Macron, he is also a favorite in the polls, ahead of the center-right former prime ministers Édouard Philippe and Gabriel Attal, and the leftist Jean-Luc Mélenchon.

However, it does not seem like a path free of thorns either. Although party sources deny it, versions have emerged about differences within the RN over Bardella's leadership style, especially in economic matters, where he proposes a more liberal program than the one Le Pen has built, and which has allowed him to gain sympathy from the working class.

The far-right leader, however, told LCI that she will give "absolute and total freedom" to her dolphin, so as not to fall into the same mistake, which, in her opinion, occurred during her first presidential campaign, when her father Jean-Marie was still "extremely involved."

Similarly, Bardella's glamorous romance with Princess María Carolina de Borbón-Dos Sicilias has also raised doubts about whether it can distance him from the image of closeness with the workers that he intends to build. "Leave them alone," was Le Pen's request, almost in a tone of blessing, during the aforementioned interview.

Read alsoPresidential elections in France: Can the far-right National Rally win without Le Pen?

More importantly, Bardella himself faces several legal proceedings. As reported by 'Le Monde', this same week raids were carried out in France and other European countries due to an investigation by the European Public Prosecutor's Office initiated in July 2025 for alleged misuse of European funds between 2019 and 2024 by the Identity and Democracy (ID) group, a faction to which the RN MEPs belonged.

"As always, the judicial processes foreshadow the electoral calendar. We have nothing to blame ourselves, and we will prove it," wrote Jordan Bardella in X, acknowledging the judicial proceedings.

"I no longer believe in coincidences," was Le Pen's response when asked about the issue by LCI, showing that the idea of ​​a 'judicial plot' against the extreme right can come to dominate the campaign in France, regardless of who the candidate is.

With Reuters, EFE and local media

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