French far-right leader Marine Le Pen has been barred from running in the 2027 presidential election following an embezzlement conviction, a court ruling that could significantly impact both French and global politics.
The decision deals a heavy blow to the 56-year-old National Rally (RN) party chief, a prominent figure in the European far-right movement and a leading contender in polls for the 2027 French presidential race.
This unexpected turn of events throws the succession plans for President Emmanuel Macron into disarray and further weakens his already fragile minority government, grappling with a series of ongoing crises.
It is also likely to exacerbate growing global anger among right-wing leaders over what they see as judges meddling in their mandates.
In a prime time TV interview on TF1, Le Pen said she was innocent, and would appeal as soon as possible against what she described as a politicised ruling aimed at blocking her presidential bid. She said she was currently out of the running for 2027, but would continue to fight for her future.
"Tonight there are millions of French people who are outraged, outraged to an unimaginable degree, seeing that in France, in the country of human rights, judges have implemented practices that we thought were reserved for authoritarian regimes," she said.
Le Pen's five-year public office ban cannot be suspended by appeal, although she will retain her parliamentary seat until her term ends. She also received a four-year prison sentence - two years of which are suspended and two years to be served under home detention, and a 100,000-euro ($108,200) fine, but they will not apply until her appeals are exhausted.
The right reacts
Billionaire Elon Musk, who has led calls to impeach U.S. judges blocking President Donald Trump's agenda, while also lending his support to European far-right figures, alleged an establishment plot behind Le Pen's defenestration.
"When the radical left can't win via democratic vote, they abuse the legal system to jail their opponents," he wrote on X. "This is their standard playbook throughout the world."
Le Pen's allies, as well as far-right leaders from Europe and around the world, joined in condemning the ruling as judicial overreach.
"Today it is not only Marine Le Pen who was unjustly convicted: It was French democracy that was killed," said Le Pen's right-hand man, RN president Jordan Bardella.
Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who was barred from office until 2030 for abuse of power, said Le Pen's sentence was "left-wing judicial activism."
"Je suis Marine!" Viktor Orban wrote on X.
Even the Kremlin chimed in – Dmitry Peskov, spokesman for Vladimir Putin, declared that "Marine Le Pen's situation constitutes a violation of democratic norms".
France's High Council of the Judiciary expressed its concern over what it called "virulent reactions" provoked by the ruling.
"Statements by political leaders on the merits of the prosecution or the conviction, particularly during the deliberations, cannot be accepted in a democratic society," it said in a statement.
There have been instances of immediate political bans in France since the passage of toughened anti-corruption laws in 2016, but Le Pen supporters accused judges of policing politics.
Arnaud Benedetti, a political analyst, said Le Pen's ban was a watershed moment.
"This is a seismic political event," he said. "Inevitably, it's going to reshuffle the pack, particularly on the right."
Crypto investor blasts off on groundbreaking SpaceX flight over North and South Poles
Ukraine-Russia live: Moscow responds to ‘very angry’ Trump while drafting 160,000 men
No country better placed than UK to strike tariff deal with Trump, Reynolds claims
Russian authorities move to lift the terrorist designation for the Taliban
Starmer speaks to Zelensky days before meeting of military leaders
How a 2.5bn-year-old rock deposit became central to helping stop Russia’s invasion
