General
Le Pen and Her Party Go on Trial in France on E.U. Embezzlement Charges
Marine Le Pen and others are accused of using European funds for unrelated party expenses. The trial, expected to last two months, comes as her National Rally has gained more political sway.
The French far-right leader Marine Le Pen and over 20 other people went on trial in Paris on Monday on charges that they embezzled funds from the European Parliament between 2004 and 2016.
The trial, which is scheduled to last two months, is an unwelcome distraction for Ms. Le Pen, who will have to spend time in court at a time when her party has acquired immense political sway in France following last summer’s parliamentary elections.
The accusations that the party illegally used several million euros in European funds for unrelated partisan expenses have been known for nearly a decade, but they have done little to hobble the National Rally’s rise as a xenophobic, nationalist party.
A conviction could deal a severe blow to Ms. Le Pen’s political ambitions as she prepares her fourth presidential run, in 2027. It could also derail her efforts to bring her party further into the mainstream, although it is unlikely to weaken its current power in the lower house of Parliament.
Ms. Le Pen, who was a European lawmaker from 2004 to 2017, is charged with embezzlement and complicity in embezzlement. She faces up to 10 years in prison, a maximum fine of 1 million euros, about $1.12 million, and could be barred from public office for up to a decade if convicted.
“I don’t think that this can kill the party,” said Jean-Yves Camus, an expert on the far right at the Jean-Jaurès Foundation, noting that French voters are currently focused on the country’s ballooning debt and deficit, possible tax increases, and immigration policy.
