French far-right leader Marine Le Pen barred from seeking office for 5 years, a political earthquake

The court ruling was a political as well as a judicial temblor for France, hobbling one of the leading contenders to succeed President Emmanuel Macron at the end of his second and final term. So broad were the political implications that even some of Le Pen's opponents said the Paris court had gone too far.

But it’s too early to say how the case will affect voters. The potential elimination of Le Pen could fire up diehard supporters, just as U.S. President’s Donald Trump’s legal problems motivated some of his. But it could also leave her on the sidelines, deflating what had been her upward trajectory.

Le Pen said the court should not have made her ineligible to run for office until all her chances at appeal had been exhausted, and that by doing so it was clear the court was aiming “specifically to prevent” her from being elected president.

"If that’s not a political decision, I don’t know what is,” Le Pen said in the TF1 interview.

She said the ruling marked a “fateful day for our democracy” but vowed to keep pursuing what she called the now “admittedly narrow” path to the presidency.

“There are millions of French people who believe in me, millions of French people who trust me,” she added: “For 30 years I’ve been fighting for you, and for 30 years I’ve been fighting against injustice, so I’m going to continue fighting.”

Le Pen left the court before the sentencing

Le Pen herself was not around to hear the chief judge pronounce the sentence that threw her career into a tailspin. By then, the 56-year-old politician had already strode out of the courtroom.

Her supporters quickly expressed their disapproval of the verdict. Jordan Bardella, her 29-year-old protégé who could replace her on the ballot in 2027 if she cannot run, said on X that Le Pen was “being unjustly condemned” and that French democracy was “being executed.”

Hungary’s populist prime minister, Viktor Orbán, quickly took to social media to express his support, posting “Je suis Marine!” — I am Marine — on X.

Among political opponents of Le Pen who expressed unease was conservative lawmaker Laurent Wauquiez, who said the verdict put “a very heavy weight on our democracy.”

‘A political death’ scenario

The sentence could prevent Le Pen from making what would have been her fourth run for the presidency in 2027, a scenario she has previously described as a “political death.” The party’s most recognized figurehead and a formidable campaigner, Le Pen was runner-up to Macron in the 2017 and 2022 presidential elections, and her party’s electoral support has grown in recent years.

Only an appellate ruling that overturns the ban on public office could restore her hopes of running. But with the election just two years away, time is running out. There’s no guarantee that an appeals court would rule more favorably, and appeals in France can take several years to conclude.

The verdict was a resounding defeat for Le Pen's National Rally party, formerly the National Front.

She and 24 other party officials were 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.

A “system” to siphon off EU money

The judge handed down guilty verdicts to eight other current or former members of her party who, like Le Pen, previously served as European Parliament lawmakers. Also convicted were 12 people who served as parliamentary aides and three others. Only one defendant was acquitted. All had denied wrongdoing during the nine-week trial that took place in late 2024.

The chief judge said Le Pen had been at the heart of “a system” that her party used to siphon off EU parliament funds, though she said they didn't enrich themselves personally. The ruling described the embezzlement as “a democratic bypass" that deceived the parliament and voters.

From the front row of the court, Le Pen showed no immediate reaction when the judge first declared her guilty. But she grew more agitated as the verdict was delivered in greater detail. She shook her head in disagreement as the judge said Le Pen’s party illegally used European funds for its own benefit.

“Incredible,” she whispered at one point. She then left without warning, picking up her bag and striding out, her heels clicking on the hardwood floor. The abrupt departure left many in the courtroom in disbelief as they turned their heads toward the door.

The electoral ineligibility takes effect immediately, but the house arrest is suspended while she appeals.

Le Pen also serves as a lawmaker in France's National Assembly, a role not affected by the ineligibility ruling that she can keep for now.

But if Macron dissolves parliament again, as he did last year, and calls early legislative elections, she would be barred from running.

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Leicester reported from Le Pecq, France. Thomas Adamson in Paris and Justin Spike in Budapest contributed.