National Rally leader Marine Le Pen has announced that she will run in France’s 2027 presidential election after an appeals court reduced the political ban imposed on her following her conviction in a European Union funds embezzlement case.
The court reduced her ban from running for public office from 60 months to 45 months, with 30 months suspended. However, Le Pen insists she will continue her legal fight by appealing to France’s highest court.
Shortly after the ruling, Le Pen launched her presidential campaign website and called on French voters to support her, in what has been described as an unprecedented situation in France, with a presidential candidate seeking office despite having been convicted of misusing public funds.
Speaking on TF1 television just hours after the court’s decision, Le Pen declared, “Today, I am a candidate for the presidency. The French people will have the final say.”
Le Pen, who has consistently led opinion polls ahead of the 2027 election, said her appeal to the Court of Cassation would suspend the immediate enforcement of the appeals court’s ruling while the case is under review.
Among the penalties imposed is the requirement to wear an electronic ankle monitor. She is also barred from standing for elected office for 15 months, a period calculated from March 2025. Her original sentence had prohibited her from seeking public office for five years.
During the legal proceedings, the National Rally had begun preparing party president Jordan Bardella, 30, as its presidential candidate should Le Pen become ineligible to contest the election.
The National Rally currently leads several opinion polls ahead of France’s presidential election scheduled for April 2027. Having unsuccessfully run for president three times, Le Pen now believes voters may look beyond her conviction when casting their ballots.
“There is now no scenario in which I will not run in 2027,” she said.
Le Pen also told TF1 that her appeal would allow her to campaign without wearing the electronic ankle monitor. France’s Court of Cassation has previously indicated that it would seek to rule on her appeal before the 2027 presidential election takes place.
