France Convicts Marie Le Pen of Fake Embezzlement, Bans Her From Running in 2027, an Election In Which She is the Front-Runner

Where have I seen this tactic before?

Auron MacIntyre @AuronMacintyre

In western liberal democracies jailing or shooting the opposition candidate is quickly becoming the preferred election strategy

CNN claims she's just a "figurehead" so this isn't an attack on democracy, you see.

Far-right leader Marine Le Pen banned from 2027 presidential race, throwing French politics into disarray

French far-right figurehead Marine Le Pen has been banned from running for political office for five years after being found guilty of embezzling European Union funds, in a politically explosive ruling that has shattered her hopes of winning the presidency in 2027.

A Paris court also handed Le Pen, who was the frontrunner for the next election, a four-year prison sentence with two years suspended, to be served under house arrest, and a 100,000 Euro ($108,000) fine. Le Pen will file an appeal, her lawyer said.

The imprisonment is on hold. The thing they really wanted- - banning her from running -- is imposed immediately, even during her appeal.

Europe is a totalitarian hellhole and we should no longer spend a dime defending it.

Her party, National Rally (RN), was ordered to pay 2 million Euros in fines for the 4.1 million Euros that it was accused of embezzling.

The court's presiding judge, Bénédicte de Perthuis, said Le Pen's actions amounted to a "serious and lasting attack on the rules of democratic life in Europe, but especially in France." She said Le Pen's immediate ban on standing for office was tied to "democratic public unrest" that would result from the election of a person convicted of embezzlement.

But the decision itself looks set to spark significant unrest. Jordan Bardella, Le Pen's protégé who succeeded her as RN's president, said it was not only Le Pen "who is being unjustly condemned: it is French democracy that is being executed."

Marion Maréchal, Le Pen's niece and a Member of the European Parliament for a rival far-right party, said her aunt had "led our side on the path to victory. This is her only guilt, and that is why she is condemned."

Calm and composed as she entered the court on Monday, greeting supporters, Le Pen grew increasingly agitated, shaking her head as the court president spent more than an hour detailing the embezzlement scheme.

"The question therefore arises in a singular way in this criminal case which makes its decision 'in the name of the French people.' The court must not ignore the requirement to seek a social consensus," the presiding judge said.

De Perthuis said her fellow judges had weighed the "two risks" in their sentencing: the risk of a person convicted for embezzlement being elected for political office and the "major risk to public order" if a likely presidential candidate was banned from running.

...

Le Pen had branded the case against her a "witchhunt," mirroring language that US President Donald Trump used against legal proceedings that targeted him.

Her right-wing European allies also quickly rallied to her defense after the decision.

"Je suis Marine," Viktor Orban, Hungary's prime minister and a champion of socially conservative politics in Europe, posted on X following the conviction, with Italian far-right leader and Matteo Salvini slamming the decision.

More from David Strom.

posted by Ace at 01:18 PM

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