Marine Le Pen Announces 2027 Presidential Run After Court Reduces Ban

Marine Le Pen announced she will run for president in France's 2027 election and named Jordan Bardella as the person she would appoint prime minister if elected, Washington Examiner reported. She described their partnership as "a duo... " A Paris appeal court on July 7 found Le Pen guilty of misusing €2.8 million in European Parliament funds in a fake jobs scheme.

The court reduced her electoral ban to 15 months and ruled that time served since March 2025 counts toward the penalty, making her eligible to run. It also ordered her to wear an electronic ankle monitor for one year, but her appeal to the Court of Cassation suspends that requirement. The Court of Cassation is expected to rule by April 2027.

Le Pen originally was convicted on April 1 of embezzling European Parliament funds. She has maintained her innocence while acknowledging the use of funds as a logistical mistake. Public prosecutors have said they will appeal the reduced sentences.

Two recent polls placed Le Pen at the top of voter preferences. An Ifop survey for LCI and Le Figaro showed her with 36 percent support, 17 points ahead of Edouard Philippe. A Toluna Harris Interactive poll for M6 and RTL reported her support between 34 and 36 percent, with Philippe at 16 percent.

Le Pen and Bardella appeared together at a market in La Flèche, western France, on July 8. Bardella, 30, said he was "delighted" by Le Pen's return to the leadership of National Rally and felt "neither relief nor disappointment" about stepping back as the presidential candidate. Bardella is romantically linked to Princess Maria Carolina of Bourbon-Two Sicilies.