Overview
- Marine Le Pen remains under an immediate five-year ineligibility from a first-instance conviction in the European parliamentary assistants case.
- Her appeal trial is scheduled for January 13 to February 12, 2026, with a deliberation expected roughly four months later.
- She says the Rassemblement National will settle on its presidential nominee before the summer holidays, targeting a timely campaign launch.
- Le Pen rejects waiting for a Cour de cassation ruling, arguing a late decision could leave no time for a viable national campaign.
- Jordan Bardella publicly denied any rift on BFMTV, calling Le Pen a friend and the party’s legitimate candidate, as her timetable preserves a potential fallback role for him.