Marine Le Pen says she will not run for president in 2027 if a Paris appeals court orders her to wear an electronic bracelet tied to a conviction over alleged misuse of EU funds. The court is set to deliver a key verdict Tuesday.
Marine Le Pen framed it as a simple test: if she can run, she will. If she can campaign only with a judge deciding when she can move, she says that would make the job impossible.
The French far-right leader, 57, said she would not run for president next year if a Paris appeals court orders her to wear an electronic bracelet over alleged misuse of European Union funds. The appeals court is expected to deliver its key verdict on Tuesday.
Le Pen is challenging a March 2025 ruling that found she and other members of her National Rally party guilty of misusing EU Parliament funds. The alleged misconduct centers on the hiring of aides from 2004 to 2016 who. prosecutors said. worked for the party instead of carrying out parliamentary tasks.
If the appeals court convicts her again, Le Pen could face a ban from elected office and/or a requirement to wear an electronic tag, among other possible penalties.
“If I can be a candidate, I will be a candidate, provided that I am able to campaign,” Le Pen said in an interview with LCI channel late Wednesday. She added that campaign activity would be constrained if she is allowed to run but effectively prevented from campaigning freely.
Asked whether an electronic bracelet would be the main obstacle, Le Pen replied: “Well, of course. I can’t be dependent on a judge to authorize me to go hold a campaign rally … or to visit a market.”
Le Pen has denied accusations that she was at the center of a fraudulent system intended to siphon off EU funds.
In March 2025. the earlier Paris court found Le Pen was at the heart of what it described as “a fraudulent system” used to siphon off European Parliament funds worth 2.9 million euros ($3.4 million). That decision left her with a five-year ban from holding elected office and two years of house arrest with an electronic bracelet.
Le Pen said if she cannot be a candidate, she will use every available avenue of appeal. One option is the Court of Cassation. which does not re-evaluate the facts but checks whether the lower courts and courts of appeal respected the law. She noted that the Court of Cassation could take about six months to hear the case and issue a verdict.
France’s next presidential election is already on the calendar. The first round is set for April 18, with a runoff scheduled for May 2.
If she is allowed to run, Le Pen is widely viewed as a top contender to succeed centrist President Emmanuel Macron in the 2027 election. If she cannot, her 30-year-old protege Jordan Bardella would likely be the one to run.
Pressed on what separates them, Le Pen said she sees herself as the natural candidate for her camp after three previous presidential bids.
“We are complementary. I believe I have a certain experience, but Jordan has an absolutely incredible dynamism; he has the strength and energy of his youth,” she said.
Marine Le Pen National Rally electronic bracelet Paris appeals court EU funds misuse Jordan Bardella 2027 presidential election Emmanuel Macron Court of Cassation
So she’ll just… skip being president if she has to wear a bracelet? wild.
I didn’t even know about this bracelet thing until now. Sounds like the court is trying to control her whole life like it’s house arrest but political.
If they convict her again, she might get banned or tagged?? But aren’t presidential candidates supposed to do whatever they want anyway? Like if she’s innocent it should be fine, right? Idk the EU funds part is confusing.
This is exactly why people hate judges. First they say it’s about misuse of EU money, then suddenly it’s like she can’t go to a market without permission. Also she said she’ll run if she can campaign, but what if the bracelet is just the ankle part? Seems like a stunt to get sympathy.