Emmanuel Macron has commented on the sentence of Marine Le Pen and emphasized before the Council of Ministers that "the judicial authority is independent" and that the magistrates "must be protected" from the wave of personal attacks following the five-year disqualification of the leader of National Rally.
The French president acknowledged, however, that "everyone who is tried has the right to appeal," as confirmed by the French Government spokesperson, Sophie Primas. Macron's first words on the Le Pen case are seen as a support for the Judiciary and at the same time as an implicit criticism of the provisional execution that led to the immediate application of the sentence against the far-right leader, who sees her chances of running as a candidate in the 2027 presidential elections jeopardized, despite being the favorite in the polls.
Primas avoided questions about a hypothetical acceleration of the judicial calendar, following the statement from the Court of Appeals, indicating that the appeal filed by Le Pen's lawyers could be resolved in the summer of 2026, which would allow Le Pen to keep her presidential candidacy alive if she manages to overturn the sentence.
Her lawyers believe that the Court of Appeals' statement can be considered a denial of the sentence that included the immediate application of disqualification from public office for misappropriation of funds from the European Parliament.
In a combative tone, Marine Le Pen described her sentence as "a political decision" and "a nuclear bomb launched by the system" against her to prevent her from running in the presidential elections. The National Rally leader, who can continue to serve as a deputy until the next term, attacked the Judiciary and promised to fight to remain the candidate of her party in the presidential elections.
The number two of her party, Jordan Bardella, has meanwhile called for a support demonstration for his political godmothernext Sunday in Paris, near the Invalides museum that houses Napoleon's remains.