French Court Says Le Pen Can Run for President — But Still Guilty

A French appeals court ruled on July 7, 2026 that Marine Le Pen is guilty of embezzling money from the European Parliament, but shortened the ban that would have stopped her from running for president in 2027 The Guardian. The court confirmed that Le Pen and her National Rally party used fake job contracts to funnel European Parliament money into their Paris offices between 2004 and 2016.

The court made two changes to her punishment. Her jail sentence stayed mostly the same: she must wear an electronic ankle tag for one year instead of going to prison, with the other two years of her sentence suspended. She also must pay a €100,000 fine. But here's the key change: the court cut her ban from holding office down to 15 months — and she has already served that time The Guardian. This means she can legally run for president.

Le Pen, 57, leads the National Rally party and serves in the French parliament. The case started because investigators believed the party created fake job positions so it could move European Parliament money into the party's own bank accounts. That money was supposed to pay for jobs in the European Parliament in Brussels.

The ruling took on huge political importance before it even happened. Jordan Bardella, 30, who runs the National Rally day-to-day, had been getting ready to run for president instead if Le Pen was barred The Guardian. This showed how much the party depends on Le Pen. Even though Bardella has his own supporters, especially younger ones, the party treated him as a backup plan, not her equal.

Le Pen used the verdict day to her advantage. She scheduled a TV interview on TF1 at 8pm to tell the public her version of the story before other politicians or news outlets could explain it South China Morning Post.

There's something important about how French courts handle these cases. A judge can ban a politician from running even while the case is being appealed — they don't have to wait for everything to be final. That's what created the original problem for Le Pen. By cutting her ban to time already served, the court stopped that threat without saying she was innocent.

Different people will see this ruling differently. Le Pen's supporters will say she won. Her opponents, and some lawyers, will say that stealing Parliament money for twelve years should mean a longer ban. Both views are fair: the court found her guilty, but also cleared the way for her to run.

This case matters beyond France. Courts everywhere in Europe face a puzzle: when someone is running for office and facing a legal ban on candidacy, should the timing of the court's decision change because an election is coming? This happened to Le Pen, and it could happen to other politicians too.

One more thing could change the outcome: prosecutors or the people who brought the case could appeal to France's highest court. That court could decide the case differently. Until then, Le Pen's path to run for president looks legally clear.