Omg babe, so like, Marine Le Pen, the French far-right queen bee, just got totally convicted for, wait for it… embezzling European Union funds! And get this – she’s banned from running for office for five whole years. Yeah, you heard that right. That basically kills her chances of running in the 2027 presidential election, which she was totally set up for. Like, imagine prepping for your big moment and then – poof – court says, nope, you’re out.
So, here’s the tea: a Paris court found that Le Pen and eight other European Parliament members were, um, kinda scamming? They allegedly took like €4 million in EU funds and used them to pay fake parliamentary assistants. Like, these people weren’t actually doing the work they were getting paid for. Yikes. Le Pen herself got hit with a four-year prison sentence, though two of those are suspended, plus a €100,000 fine. So, not exactly a full-on jail moment, but still, not great for her.
And girl, it’s not just her – other members of her National Rally party got caught up in this mess too. A bunch of them also got found guilty, so the party’s leadership is basically in shambles right now. Imagine your whole squad going down at the same time. Not cute.
Obviously, Le Pen is not taking this lying down. She already announced she’s appealing the ruling, because duh, she’s not just gonna let this be the end of her. But like, legal drama takes time, and with 2027 creeping up, it’s a total race against the clock. Her allies are all over the place calling this a political hit job, saying it’s just another way to keep her from winning. And, tbh, some of the big-name populist leaders in Europe are backing her up, saying this is, like, democracy being destroyed or whatever.
Now, let’s talk history. This whole case, called the National Rally assistants affair (so dramatic), has been brewing for ages. Basically, investigators have been looking into whether Le Pen’s party was using EU money to pay people who were actually working for the party itself, not the European Parliament. And, well, the court was like, yeah, you totally did that. So, boom, guilty verdict.
This is, like, a huge moment in French politics, because the far-right was totally gaining steam, and now? Well, the National Rally needs to figure out its next move fast. Who’s even gonna lead them if Le Pen is legally blocked? Dramaaa. Either way, the 2027 election just got way more complicated, and you just know this story isn’t over yet.
XOXO,
Valley Girl News
