France’s far-right National Rally (RN) party has called for nationwide protests against a court decision to ban Marine Le Pen from public office for five years.
Jordan Bardella, the RN President, said that French people “must be outraged” after what he called a “disproportionate, political and partisan” judgment that would rob them of a voice in the election.
Speaking after Le Pen’s conviction for embezzling European parliament funds, Bardella called for “peaceful, democratic protests” across France.
He added that the party would be launching a leafleting campaign this weekend as part of a “people’s mobilization.”
Le Pen has said that she will appeal against the ruling, which if successful would lead to a new trial that she hopes would overturn the conviction and public office ban in time to campaign for the presidency.
Bardella, who is seen as the RN’s plan B if Le Pen fails, refused to consider stepping into her shoes as a presidential candidate and pledged his loyalty to her.
“Marine Le Pen has given me everything in politics. It is she who has given me the opportunity to be before you today. The least I can do is to fight with her to the end.
“We work together, hand in hand and in total confidence. I have total loyalty. Those who think they have killed off the RN and put us out of the game will not succeed.”
Jordan Bardella
On Tuesday morning, Bardella gave a long live interview with a French opinion channel dismissing the embezzlement charges as “an administrative disagreement with the EU.”
He described Le Pen’s sentence as “brutal” and a travesty against her and the RN, the single largest party in the French Assemblée nationale.
“If you are in politics, you are not above the law, but neither are you below it.
“As long as she can bring the RN to power everything will be done to stop us getting there. The place to fight adversaries is on political not legal ground. I say to those rejoicing in this decision: today it’s us, tomorrow it will be you.”
Jordan Bardella
Bardella added that he hoped the appeal court hearing could be held in time to correct the “error” of the lower court so that Le Pen could stand in 2027, and said RN voters were being ignored as “second-class” citizens.
He called on supporters to avoid threatening or insulting the judges. “This is unacceptable and we condemn it,” he said.
The RN has launched a petition on its website calling on supporters to: “Save democracy: support Marine.”
“We are not fashos, racists or far right. We are reasonable people who are patriotic, who love our country and we are fighting for the French people. We are fighting to get into power, not to remain in opposition.”
Jordan Bardella
Le Pen Calls Court Decision Political
At a press conference on Tuesday at the Assemblée nationale, Le Pen alluded that the court decision was political, saying that the RN would “not allow itself to be taken for a ride.”
She noted that “the establishment has dropped a nuclear bomb.”
“If they use such a powerful weapon against us, it is because we are on the verge of winning the elections.”
Marine Le Pen
She emphasized that the party would defend the French people “who have the right to vote for whosoever they wish and defend the country, which is teetering on the brink of collapse.”
Meanwhile, Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni said that the ruling against Le Pen disenfranchised millions of voters in France and the EU.
“I don’t know the merits of the accusations against Marine Le Pen, or the reasons for such a strong decision but I think that no one who cares about democracy can rejoice at a sentence that targets the leader of a major party and deprives millions of citizens of representation.”
Giorgia Meloni
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