The Paris Criminal Court has found French far-right politician Marine Le Pen and eight MEPs from her party, Rassemblement National (RN), guilty of embezzling EU funds. Le Pen's lawyer has announced an appeal against the conviction, however.
In the judgement, Le Pen was sentenced to four years in prison, two of which she will serve under electronic surveillance and two of which are suspended. She was also handed a €100,000 fine.
The far-right leader has also been banned from the 2027 presidential elections due to her conviction and therefore will not be able to participate. Le Pen left the courtroom before the judge had pronounced her sentence.
No special treatment
Between 2004 and 2016, Le Pen and her eight party colleagues used EU funds to pay assistants who worked for the party. Le Pen has denied these accusations.
In November, the French Public Prosecutor demanded ineligibility from running for public office, and five years in prison, two of which would be served, and a fine of €300,000. "It is a matter of ensuring that elected representatives, like anyone else subject to the law, do not receive special treatment," said court president Bénédicte de Perthuis.
Le Pen is set to appeal the court's decision. While the prison sentence and fine will only take effect once Le Pen's appeals are exhausted, her five-year ineligibility will take effect immediately.
'Je suis Marine'
Right-wing Italian Deputy Prime Minister, Matteo Salvini, claimed the ruling was a "declaration of war" from Brussels. "Those who fear the judgement of the voters often hide behind the judgement of the courts. In Paris, they have convicted Marine Le Pen and want to exclude her from political life," he said in a post on social media.
Dutch right-wing PVV leader, Geert Wilders, also took it to social media to express his support for Le Pen. "I am shocked by the incredibly tough verdict," he wrote. "I support and believe in her 100% and I trust she will win the appeal and become President of France."
Similarly, Hungarian Prime Minister, Viktor Orbán, expressed his support online via a post on the platform X: "Je suis Marine!" ("I am Marine").
Kremlin spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, also deplored the situation. "More and more European capitals are going down the path of violating democratic norms," he said during his daily briefing.
€2.9 million in damage
In the courtroom on Monday, the judge called the defendants one by one to the witness stand to announce their sentences. Le Pen left the courtroom without waiting for her sentence.
The 12 assistants who stood trial with the parliamentarians were also found guilty. Among them was Belgian accountant Charles Van Houtte, who was partially acquitted.
The court estimated the total damage at €2.9 million, due to "making the European Parliament pay for people who actually worked for the extreme right-wing party."
