Paris Appeals Court to Rule on Le Pen Eligibility for 2027 Presidential Election

A Paris appeals court is scheduled to rule Tuesday on whether Marine Le Pen remains eligible to run in France's 2027 presidential election. Le Pen, 57, appealed a March 2025 conviction that found her and other National Rally officials guilty of misusing European Parliament funds between 2004 and 2016.

The court sentenced her to prison and imposed a five-year ban on seeking public office. If the appeals court upholds the conviction, she could face additional penalties including an electronic monitoring device.

The National Rally party, formerly the National Front, was founded by Jean-Marie Le Pen. Marine Le Pen succeeded her father as party president and later expelled him after his repeated convictions for antisemitism and inciting racial violence. The party changed its name to National Rally as part of efforts to broaden its appeal.

It reached the presidential runoff in 2017 and 2022, with Le Pen receiving 41 percent of the vote in the second round of the 2022 election.

Bardella, 30, joined the party at age 17 and became one of its spokespersons. He led the party's list in European Parliament elections at age 23 and was elected as a member of the European Parliament. Bardella became president of the National Rally after Le Pen's legal troubles began.

The party emerged as the largest single force in France's National Assembly in recent elections but did not secure an outright majority. The presidential election is scheduled for April 18 and May 2, 2027, to select a successor to Emmanuel Macron, who cannot run for a third consecutive term.