The leader of the parliamentary group of the National Rally Party in France was convicted on Tuesday. She will have to pay fines of 100,000 euros.
The court also ordered a three-year prison sentence, of which two are suspended and with electronic monitoring, writes news.ro. Le Pen will not be eligible to hold public office for 45 months, of which 35 are suspended.
According to hotnews.ro, the previous ban was applicable for five years and has been reduced. As a result, Marine Le Pen could participate in the presidential elections, but only if she wears an electronic ankle bracelet.
The case involving the French politician pertains to older actions she was suspected of, related to the misappropriation of European funds.
In the initial process where Le Pen was convicted, in March 2025. The judges found that the RN leader knowingly ran a system where party employees in Paris posed as EU parliamentary assistants in Brussels and Strasbourg, in order to be paid from EU funds.
At that time, the party was facing a chronic lack of funds.
An essential aspect of the sentence was the fact that the ban on holding public office, initially extended for five years, was declared with immediate effect and was not suspended during the appeal – a matter that sparked Le Pen’s criticism, who accused it of being a political sentence.
In recent days, Le Pen has anticipated a possible reduction of the ban, but also suggested that a presidential candidacy with an ankle bracelet would be impossible.