Far-right politician Marine Le Pen can run for president – with an ankle monitor

French far-right leader Marine Le Pen faces a significant legal hurdle as an appeals court has sentenced her to a three-year prison term, with two years suspended and one year to be served under house arrest with an electronic ankle monitor, for embezzling EU funds.

The Paris court's decision also bars Le Pen from running for office for one year. This ruling comes after an initial conviction in March 2025, where she received a four-year sentence, two of which were to be served under house arrest with an ankle monitor, and a five-year ban from holding office. Le Pen had previously dismissed the possibility of campaigning while wearing an ankle monitor, calling the initial judicial process a "political trial."

Despite this conviction, Le Pen and the president of her National Rally (RN) party, Jordan Bardella, continue to lead in opinion polls for the presidential election scheduled for spring 2027. Bardella is polling between 35-36%, with Le Pen slightly behind at 32-33%, indicating strong potential for both to reach the second round of the election.

A victory for either far-right candidate would have substantial implications for the European Union and Franco-German relations. Both Le Pen and Bardella have expressed intentions to prioritize French law over EU law, reduce France's contributions to the EU budget, and implement stricter immigration policies. The charges stem from allegations that EU parliamentary assistants worked for the party rather than their assigned MEPs, effectively using EU funds to bolster the party's finances, with the alleged damage estimated at 4.4 million euros.

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political trial