Le Pen Convicted on Appeal but Left Eligible for 2027 Vote

Overview

• The Cour d'appel de Paris on Tuesday, July 7, 2026 convicted Marine Le Pen in the assistants-parliamentaires case and sentenced her to 45 months of ineligibility with 30 months suspended and three years in prison with two years suspended and one year to be served at home under an electronic bracelet.
• Because the effective ineligibility is 15 months, the sentence is, in principle, below the two-year threshold that would bar her from the April 2027 first round and so leaves her technically eligible to stand.
• Le Pen has said she will not campaign if forced to wear a bracelet and the RN has positioned Jordan Bardella as a ready alternative, with party leaders saying they have planned for multiple scenarios.
• Legal uncertainty remains because either side can seek a pourvoi en cassation, questions persist over the effect of exécution provisoire, and the Conseil constitutionnel will have the final authority to validate presidential candidacies on election day.
• Prosecutors said the scheme diverted about €4.1 million of European Parliament funds to party staff between 2004 and 2016, a detail that, coupled with wide domestic and international coverage, raises high political stakes for the 2027 race and for public trust in institutions.