Marine Le Pen's 2027 presidential rivals adjust their strategies to her legal timetable
A supporter poses with Jordan Bardella, president of the Rassemblement National, during a visit to Carcassonne, France, February 7, 2026. LEWIS JOLY FOR LE MONDE Politics is about anticipation. In Marine Le Pen's case, her political rivals have all but buried the prospect of her embarking on a fourth presidential campaign in 2027. Rather than wait for what they expect to be an unfavorable ruling from the Paris Criminal Court in the embezzlement case involving alleged misuse of European Parliament funds, they are preparing in advance. The Paris Court of Appeal is due to deliver its ruling on July 7. Le Pen was sentenced in March 2025 to four years in prison, including two suspended, a €100,000 fine and a five-year ban on holding elected office. Since November, she has said she will clarify her political future immediately after the appeal ruling. On both the left and the right, the Le Pen chapter is already closed. Attention has shifted to RN President Jordan Bardella. "We think she's finished," said Socialist Senator Alexandre Ouizille. "Let's not kid ourselves, Mr. Bardella will be the RN's candidate," asserted Xavier Bertrand, one of several presidential hopefuls from the conservative Les Républicains (LR). It is a political burial without ceremony. Bertrand had long considered Le Pen his preferred opponent, always ready to remind people of his victory over her in the 2015 regional elections. You have 80.99% of this article left to read. The rest is for subscribers only.
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