French far-right leader Marine Le Pen is facing a court verdict on Monday that could derail her plans to run in the next presidential election scheduled for 2027.
A judge is set to rule on whether Ms Le Pen and her National Rally party embezzled European Parliament funds.
She and 24 other party officials are accused of having used money intended for European Union parliamentary aides to instead pay staff who worked for the party between 2004 and 2016, violating the 27-nation bloc’s regulations.
Ms Le Pen and other co-defendants denied wrongdoing during the nine-week trial that took place late last year.
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The 56-year-old’s greatest concern is she could be declared ineligible to seek public office, if found guilty.
In the event of conviction, the court could impose a period where she is ineligible to run for office “with immediate effect” – even if she files an appeal.
The court would also decide whether to give Ms Le Pen a prison sentence, which would be suspended during any appeal.
That could prompt another possible headache for the far-right leader as if she appeals, she will automatically be granted a new trial, but it will likely take place in 2026, just months before the presidential election.
Ms Le Pen appears to be anticipating a guilty verdict, having told the panel of three judges: “I feel we didn’t succeed in convincing you.”
During the trial, prosecutors requested a two-year prison sentence for Ms Le Pen and a five-year period of ineligibility.
They “want my political death”, Ms Le Pen said.
In a key decision on Friday, the constitutional council ruled that a period of ineligibility with immediate effect is in line with the French constitution.
It also stressed that it is up to the judges to assess the consequences of imposing such a ban right away and make sure the ruling is “proportionate”, and takes into consideration “the preservation of voters’ freedom”.
The constitutional council rendered its ruling in a separate case that has no direct link with Ms Le Pen’s.
For more than a decade, Ms Le Pen has worked at making her party more mainstream, dulling its extremist edge to broaden its appeal to voters.
She led the National Rally from 2011 to 2021. She changed its name from the National Front, as part of her efforts to distance it from the period when her father ran it and it carried a heavy stigma of racism and anti-Semitism.
Now a lawmaker in the National Assembly, the French parliament’s powerful lower house, she has already positioned herself as a candidate to succeed President Emmanuel Macron, having twice finished runner-up to him.
In 2022, Mr Macron won with 58.5 per cent of the vote to Le Pen’s 41.5 per cent – significantly closer than when they first faced off in 2017 and the best score ever of the French far-right in a presidential bid.
Ineligibility “would have the effect of depriving me of being a presidential candidate”, she said during the trial.
“Behind that, there are 11 million people who voted for the movement I represent. So tomorrow, potentially, millions and millions of French people would see themselves deprived of their candidate in the election.” – AP
