French far-right leader Marine Le Pen and her National Rally (RN) party began their trial on Monday in Paris, accused of embezzling European Parliament funds. Le Pen, maintaining her innocence, stated, "We have not violated any political and regulatory rules of the European Parliament," promising to present solid arguments during the nine-week trial.
The trial's outcome could significantly impact Le Pen's political future as she aims to run for president in 2027. Observers believe that if convicted, the party could suffer more than just financial penalties—Le Pen and others risk up to 10 years in prison, fines of up to 1 million euros each, and potential ineligibility to hold office.
The RN and 27 officials allegedly misused EU funds from 2004 to 2016, diverting money meant for parliamentary aides to pay party employees. Despite Le Pen's denials, the party has already repaid 1 million euros to the European Parliament. The European Parliament demands an additional 2.7 million euros in compensation for financial and reputational damages.
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Le Pen's defense hinges on arguing political assistants' roles, which she claims were misunderstood. She emphasized that parliamentary assistants are inherently political, working according to individual skills. The trial's outcome will be closely watched by her political rivals and could potentially derail her ambition to succeed Emmanuel Macron. (This story was generated by Newser's AI chatbot. Source: the AP)
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