A French appeals court has ruled that far-right leader Marine Le Pen remains guilty of misusing public funds but reduced the period during which she is barred from holding elected office, potentially allowing her to compete in France's 2027 presidential election.
The court upheld her conviction over the misuse of European Parliament funds and ordered a three-year prison sentence, with two years suspended and one year to be served at home under electronic monitoring.
It also imposed a €100,000 fine and reduced her ban from public office to a 45-month term, with 30 months suspended, leaving an effective 15-month disqualification after accounting for the ruling.
The decision means Le Pen could legally seek the presidency while serving her sentence under an electronic monitoring bracelet.
The case stems from allegations that European Parliament funds were improperly used to pay party staff in France instead of parliamentary assistants.
The appeals court said the misappropriated public funds amounted to €2.8 million.
Four other National Rally politicians who served in the European Parliament were also convicted, while additional defendants were found guilty of complicity or receiving property linked to the misused funds.
French President Emmanuel Macron declined to comment directly on the judgment, saying, "What is healthy for democracy is for the president not to comment on court rulings."
Le Pen has previously stated that wearing an electronic monitoring bracelet would make a presidential campaign difficult.
"When you’re a presidential candidate, you need to be completely free to move around," she said in a recent televised interview.
She had indicated that Jordan Bardella, leader of the National Rally, would become the party's presidential candidate if her sentence prevented her from campaigning.
The appeals court's decision now leaves that choice open, with Le Pen expected to announce whether she intends to enter the presidential race.
The ruling follows a lower court decision that had imposed a five-year ban from public office, a penalty that threatened to end her presidential ambitions before the appeals process concluded.
The outcome preserves the possibility that either Le Pen or Bardella could represent the National Rally in what is expected to be a closely watched 2027 election.