The Paris court struck a big blow this Monday, March 31, declaring Marine Le Pen and nine MEPs of the National Rally (RN) guilty of embezzlement of public funds in the case of European parliamentary assistants.
This condemnation marks a decisive turning point for the File Right leader, while immediate ineligibility was pronounced against it, thus threatening its upcoming presidential ambitions.
The judges estimated that the total damage in this case amounted to 4.1 million euros, due to the use of European funds to remunerate fictitious parliamentary assistants, supposed to work for MEPs but in reality in the service of the RN. This system, which would have lasted more than ten years, was qualified by the court as “organized network” within the party.
Marine Le Pen’s conviction to immediate ineligibility raises important questions. If this decision is confirmed, the president of the RN could be deprived of any electoral participation, in particular to the presidential election of 2027, thus disturbing its plans and the strategy of the RN. The political consequences are heavy: its absence of the electoral field would weaken a party which owes it part of its visibility and its influence.
Despite the magnitude of this conviction, the leader of the RN and its supporters have continued to proclaim their innocence, denouncing politicized justice. For his part, Jordan Bardella, his heir designated at the head of the RN, could now find himself in an uncomfortable position. Although he embodies the future of the party, his less clear profile could slow down the electoral dynamics of the RN.
This verdict comes after a trial of several months at the end of which the accusation had requested severe sentences, including five years of ineligibility and five years in prison, including two farms, in addition to a fine of 300,000 euros. But beyond criminal sanctions, this is the impact of this decision on the RN and its ability to maintain its influence which is now at the center of the debates. An uncertain future is looming for the movement, whose future now seems suspended from this conviction.
