Marine Le Pen cleared to run in 2027 French election despite conviction

Marine Le Pen, a prominent figure in French right-wing politics, has been cleared to participate in the 2027 presidential election. This decision comes despite an appeals court affirming a 2025 embezzlement conviction against her.

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If it is a matter of allowing me to run as a candidate while effectively preventing me from campaigning with complete freedom, you will surely understand that that is not possible.

The court reduced her ineligibility to run for office from five years to 45 months, with 30 months suspended. This revised sentence means she has already served the required time, making her eligible for the April 2027 election. However, the ruling also reinstated a requirement for her to wear an electronic tag while serving a portion of her prison sentence under house arrest.

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When you are a presidential candidate, you must be completely free to move about.

Le Pen had previously stated that campaigning under house arrest with an electronic tag was "not possible," emphasizing the need for complete freedom of movement to engage with voters. She is expected to address her intentions later on Tuesday. Her National Rally party was found guilty in 2025 of embezzling European Union funds between 2004 and 2016. The court also ordered her to pay over $100,000 in fines, a sentence that was suspended during the appeal but has now been reinstated.

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If it is a matter of allowing me to run as a candidate while effectively preventing me from campaigning with complete freedom, you will surely understand that that is not possible.

Her lawyer described the verdict as a "good start," though he expressed only partial satisfaction. Le Pen faced potential prison time, with a dozen others also receiving guilty verdicts in the embezzlement case. If Le Pen had been barred from running, her party's president, Jordan Bardella, was considered a likely successor for the presidential ambitions.

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partially