France, Le Pen: ‘I won’t stand for election in 2027 if they make me wear an electronic tag’

The leader of the French far right Marine Le Pen has stated that she will not stand in the 2027 presidential election if the Paris Court of Appeal orders her to wear an electronic tag. The Court is due to hand down its ruling on Tuesday and this could affect her presidential ambitions.

Le Pen, aged 57, has appealed against a ruling handed down in March 2025 which found her and other members of her party, the Rassemblement National, guilty of misusing European Parliament funds to hire, between 2004 and 2016, staff who allegedly worked for the party rather than carrying out parliamentary duties. If convicted again, she could face a ban from holding public office or be required to wear an electronic tag (or both). “If I am allowed to stand, I will stand, provided I am able to campaign,” Le Pen said in an interview with the LCI channel late on Wednesday evening. “Because if I were allowed to stand but were effectively prevented from campaigning freely, then you can understand that it wouldn’t be possible,” she added. When asked specifically whether an electronic tag would be the main obstacle, she replied: “Well, of course. I cannot be dependent on a judge for authorisation to hold an election rally or visit a market.”

Le Pen denies the allegations that she was at the centre of a fraudulent scheme designed to siphon off EU funds and says she will appeal if necessary. If she were unable to stand as a candidate, her protégé Jordan Bardella would likely be the far-right candidate for the Élysée. France will hold the first round of the upcoming presidential elections on 18 April, with the run-off scheduled for 2 May. In March 2025, a Paris court ruled that Le Pen was at the centre of “a fraudulent scheme” which her party used to embezzle €2.9 million in European Parliament funds. She was banned from holding elected office for five years and sentenced to two years’ house arrest with an electronic tag. “If I am unable to stand as a candidate, I will pursue every avenue of appeal available to me,” Le Pen said. She could appeal to the Court of Cassation, which does not rule on the facts of the case but checks whether the lower courts and courts of appeal have complied with the law. The Court of Cassation could take around six months to examine the case and deliver a ruling. If she were allowed to stand as a candidate, Le Pen is widely regarded as one of the leading contenders to succeed the centrist President Emmanuel Macron in the 2027 elections.