AGENCY
Paris, Mar 31
French Right-wing leader and National Rally party figurehead Marine Le Pen was on Monday found guilty of embezzlement of public funds by the Paris Criminal Court which sentenced her to a four-year prison sentence and a five-year ban on being elected to public office.
The ruling came as a major shock to Le Pen, dashing her hopes of becoming the French President as several polls had put her as a strong contender to succeed Emmanuel Macron. Her right-wing party is also witnessing a surge in popularity, riding on a populist anti-migration agenda. Her conviction has triggered an uproar among right-wing supporters and leaders in France as party figures were left scrambling for a Plan B, not prepared for the severity of the sentence. While Le Pen’s lawyers have vowed to appeal, she has few options available to rescue her Presidential chances. It is still not sure whether the hearing on her appeal will take place in time to overturn the court ruling or to lighten the sentence. Another counter-move could be to appeal to the country’s constitutional council, the highest constitutional body, for a suspension of the ruling, on the grounds of respecting the freedom of the electorate.
The uncertainty has put the focus on another person; Le Pen’s heir-apparent and third-most popular politician in France, the 29-year-old Jordan Bardella. Speculations are that the National Rally president could now lead the Right-wing and run for Presidency.
Bardella reacted to Le Pen’s conviction, stating: “Today, it’s not just Marine Le Pen who is unfairly condemned: It’s French democracy that is being executed.”
A TikTok star popular with young voters, Bardella could be now the face of the far-right party. He is his party’s candidate for next week’s European Parliament election and is likely to emerge a winner considering that poll figures show a third of French voters plan to cast their votes for the National Rally. Bardella’s popularity is such that he was the only politician to figure in the list of the 50 most popular figures in France compiled by the French weekly newspaper JDD. Many believe his rise as a popular European politician also reflects the sea change in the continent, as nationalist parties surge.
Armed with his suave look and youthful exuberance, Bardella has now built a wide gap between him and Valérie Hayer, Macron’s candidate in the race.
The French media too has lavished praise on him, addressing Bardella “superstar”.
While Bardella’s potential performance in the June elections won’t bring him closer to the Presidency, it is widely seen as a reflection of what happens in the 2027 Presidential election.
However, many feel that Bardella isn’t ready to become the President. He has only been moulded to become her prime minister and not president. Even party insiders feel he is not yet ready and his opponents claim he has a light grasp of issues. But, at the moment there seem to be very few options for the right wing.
“There’s a ‘Bardella’ phenomenon,” a political adviser from the rival conservative Les Républicains party told Politico. “People want to see Macron take a beating, and in a confusing way, he manages to appear as a new political proposition for the right and the far-right.”
