Top French court to rule on Le Pen appeal before 2027 election

Marine Le Pen has announced her intention to run for the French presidency for a fourth time, despite facing legal challenges. An appeal court upheld a guilty verdict against her for embezzling European parliament funds, sentencing her to one year of house arrest with an electronic tag. Le Pen plans to appeal this sentence to France's highest court, the Court of Cassation, which is expected to rule by early April, before the 2027 election.

Her decision to run has drawn comparisons to Donald Trump, with opponents suggesting she is using legal battles to gain attention. Le Pen, the figurehead of the far-right National Rally party, stated that the French people will decide her fate. Despite the conviction, her party's base largely supports her candidacy. However, opponents argue the embezzlement case will complicate her efforts to broaden her appeal beyond her core voters, potentially hindering her chances against candidates like Emmanuel Macron, whom she lost to in the final rounds of the 2017 and 2022 elections.

Le Pen's running mate, Jordan Bardella, who is also the party president, is expected to campaign alongside her as her potential prime minister. Le Pen has previously accused a "tyranny of judges" of trying to prevent her from running for president.