Perpignan Mayor Aliot Sentenced to Suspended Prison Term, Can Remain in Office

The mayor of Perpignan, Louis Aliot, has escaped a ban from holding public office after an appeals court handed him a suspended one-year prison sentence and a two-year ineligibility period. Aliot, who is also the vice-president of the National Rally (RN) party, received the sentence along with a 5,000 euro fine. This outcome allows him to continue leading the city of Perpignan, where he was re-elected in the first round of elections last March.

Despite the more lenient ruling compared to the initial trial, Aliot expressed his intention to appeal to the Court of Cassation. He described the judgment as "too great an injustice," particularly given that he was not accused of personal enrichment in the case concerning the hiring of parliamentary assistants for the FN (National Front, now RN).

In the first instance, Aliot had been sentenced to 18 months in prison, with six months to be served under electronic monitoring, a three-year ineligibility period, and an 8,000 euro fine. He was accused of employing a parliamentary assistant whose activities allegedly served the party rather than the European Parliament. Aliot has consistently denied these accusations.

Aliot also used the statement to express his solidarity with Marine Le Pen, who received a three-year prison sentence, one year of which is to be served under electronic monitoring, in the same case.