Marine Le Pen convicted of misappropriation of public funds on appeal
The French far-right leader Marine Le Pen was found guilty on Tuesday on appeal of misappropriation of public funds.
Marine Le Pen convicted of misappropriation of public funds on appeal
The French far-right leader Marine Le Pen was found guilty on Tuesday by an appeals court of misappropriation of public funds. The information is reported by news agency Reuters, cited by Ekstra Bladet.
The sentence handed down is three years imprisonment, two of which are suspended. One year can be served at home with an electronic tag. She is also prohibited from holding public office for forty-five months, thirty of which are suspended.
According to an analysis by the BBC, Le Pen is considered to have already served fifteen months following last year's judgment. Consequently, she is not automatically excluded from standing in next year's presidential election.
The case concerns the fact that her party, the Rassemblement National (RN), allegedly misappropriated European funds to pay assistants working for the party in France rather than for the party's elected representatives in the European Parliament. This constituted a breach of regulations.
On Tuesday, Le Pen left the courtroom without addressing journalists. She had previously rejected the idea of campaigning with an electronic tag, for both logistical and political reasons.
A statement on her future as a presidential candidate is expected later in the day. An interview is scheduled for 20:00 on French channel TF1.
In March last year, she had already been found guilty at first instance and received a five-year ban from holding office. During the appeal trial, she adopted a different strategy from the first judgment. At that time, she had categorically denied any wrongdoing and accused the judges of political bias. On appeal, she explained that she might have made mistakes, but that this was not intentional.
Le Pen has been a candidate in the presidential election twice against Emmanuel Macron and has held a key role in the far-right party since 2011, now named Rassemblement National. In 2021, she stepped down from leading the party in favour of Jordan Bardella, who is expected to be the party's candidate in 2027 if she does not stand.
Source: Ekstra Bladet