French far-right leader Marine Le Pen found guilty of embezzlement, barred from seeking public office

Mon Mar 31 10:52:08 UTC 2025: ## French Court Bans Le Pen From Holding Public Office After Embezzlement Conviction

**Paris, March 31, 2025** – French far-right leader Marine Le Pen has been found guilty of embezzling European Union funds and barred from holding public office, dealing a major blow to her political career. The ruling, delivered Monday by a Paris court, followed a nine-week trial that concluded in late 2024. While the exact duration of her ineligibility remains unspecified, the decision effectively jeopardizes her chances of running for president in 2027, a prospect she has called “political death.”

Le Pen, who was runner-up in the 2017 and 2022 presidential elections, dramatically left the courtroom before the full sentencing was announced. The court found her guilty of using European Parliament funds to pay staff working for her National Rally party between 2004 and 2016, a violation of EU regulations. Eight other current or former members of her party, along with 12 parliamentary aides, also received guilty verdicts. All face up to 10 years in prison and can appeal.

The judge stated that Le Pen was central to a system designed to misappropriate EU funds, though the court determined that she and her co-defendants did not personally enrich themselves. The embezzlement was described as a “democratic bypass” that deceived the parliament and voters. Le Pen maintained her innocence throughout the trial, arguing that adapting the work of EU-funded aides to the needs of lawmakers, including some party-related political work, was acceptable. However, evidence presented during the trial revealed that EU funds were used to pay for Le Pen’s bodyguard and personal assistant.

Prosecutors had requested a two-year prison sentence and a five-year ban from public office. Le Pen argued that preventing her candidacy would disenfranchise the 11 million people who voted for her party. With Le Pen’s future in politics uncertain, Jordan Bardella, her 29-year-old protégé and current party leader, is considered her likely successor.

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