Marine Le Pen appeal verdict: why this moment is important for France

This appeal ruling will determine Le Pen’s political future and will be the starting point for the presidential race. The first round is on 18th April 2027 and the final is on 2nd May.

In the year On March 31, 2025, she was found guilty of embezzling €1.4m (£1.2m) from the European Parliament and banned from public office for five years. Le Pen was a member of the EP (MEP) from 2004-17.

She was sentenced to four years in prison, two of which were suspended and two of which were to be served at home with an electronic tag.

Le Pen approves or tolerates the fake job plan and the verdict in 2016. It made her out of the 2027 elections.

In appeals heard in January and February, Le Pen denied organizing the fraud but admitted to “mistakes” in which some parliamentary aides acted “for the benefit of the party”.

Prosecutors want an end to the original five-year ban on government jobs, now four years in prison, with one year suspended for electronic identification and three years.

Le Pen said she is not afraid of the decision, but believes she will not be able to run for president if the judges decide she must wear the tag.