eBefore the sentence was sentenced, Marine Le Pen had been cleaned from the courtroom and her handbag was hanging from her arm. The fierce right leader of France had listened well enough and had reason to fear the worst. On March 31, the Paris Criminal Court ran for the office that was elected for five years, thus banning bidding for the presidency in 2027. The decision sent shockwaves through her party, the National Assembly (RN), supporting the race to make Emmanuel Macron successful as president. Ms Le Pen led the polls for the first round of the 2027 election.
The judge found that Ms Le Pen, along with eight other current or former members of the European Parliament and 12 former assistants, was found guilty of misuse of public funds for a song worth 4.1 million euros ($4.4 million). The court ruled that there was no personal enrichment related to her or fellow party figures. But between 2004 and 2016, she placed the “center” of a system that used funds from the EU parliament to fund her Nationalist Party. The judge said no parliamentary assistants of the parliament had ever lived in Brussels. Ms Le Pen was also ordered to pay a fine of 100,000 euros and served a four-year sentence, two of whom were suspended and used electronic bracelets under house arrest for two.
Ms. Le Pen was visiblely furious at this decision. The verdict was unusually harsh by carrying immediate sentences. This was requested by prosecutors after the trial trial ended in November last year. However, some of the RN leaders’ co-accused had been banned from campaigning for a shorter period. Louis Arriott, mayor of Perpignan and member of the party’s national department, was not sentenced immediately. Earlier this month, Le Pen said he would consider such outcomes to himself “deeply anti-democratic.” After the decision, her 29-year-old protégé Jordan Bardera declared that “French democracy has been executed.”
There are few options available to Ms Le Pen to save her presidential chances. Even if she sues, there is no certainty that the hearing could be held in time to overturn the court’s sentence or reduce the sentence. She may be able to appeal to the best constitutional body, the Constitutional Council, to suspend rulings, on the grounds that she respects voter freedom.
Meanwhile, the RN was confused. Party figures were not prepared for the severity of the sentence, nor did they have Plan B. The fiercely ambitious Mr. Bardera is a smooth operator and the star of Tiktok. However, he was preparing to become Prime Minister, not president. Even party insiders realize he’s not ready yet. But he may be their best option. A poll released before the court’s ruling rated him as France’s third most popular politician.
In the short term, Le Pen was able to revive his role as a troublemaker for the minority French government led by centralist François Baileau. It was her party vote last December that helped him defeat his central predecessor, Michel Bernier, torpedoing his 2025 budget. To overthrow or threaten another government would be a good way for Ms. Le Pen to anger at the system. It is noteworthy that her vote in December followed the prosecutor’s decision to immediately ban her from running at the inauguration.
In the long run, Ms. Le Pen’s ban could have two consequences for the party’s election chances. Details of the misuse of funds that emerged during the trial could undermine RN’s status among new voters who have won by her attempts over the past decade to make the previous Fringe party look respectable. This, along with Bardera’s lack of experience, could undermine that outlook.
However, for Ms Le Pen’s core voters, the ruling may develop a sense that the system is opposed to her party, as she has long been drawn to her anti-establishment message. It has proven to be a powerful force when populist politicians in both Europe and America are opposed to what they consider anti-democratic censorship.■
Source link
