- A French court has shortened Marine Le Pen's ban from public office, potentially allowing her to contest the 2027 presidential election.
- Le Pen had been seeking to overturn a five-year ban from public office and a four-year jail sentence, which were imposed last year for embezzling funds from the European Parliament.
- The far-right leader was accused of misusing European parliament funds, intended for parliamentary assistants, to pay employees of her own political party, the National Rally.
- Following a seven-year investigation, Le Pen was found guilty in 2023 of embezzling €1.4m (£1.2m) between 2004 and 2016 through a 'fake jobs' scheme.
- With her anti-immigration National Rally party currently leading in the polls, this ruling provides a significant boost to their chances of securing power, though it is unclear if Le Pen will run due to conditions on her jail sentence.
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