Le Pen, in front of thousands of supporters: "I will not give up."

ParisIn case it wasn't clear enough in recent days, Marine Le Pen said it again this Sunday: Despite the five-year ban that will hardly allow him to run in the 2027 presidential elections, does not intend to throw in the towel. "Rest assured: I will not give up. This [judicial] decision has trampled on my people, my country, and my honor," the leader of the National Rally (RN) exclaimed this Sunday before thousands of supporters gathered in Paris to support her. "We do not resign, we do not bow down," she warned.

The event had been called by Le Pen to protest against the sentence made public on Monday, with the aim of staging a show of force in the face of what the convicted woman considers a "political decision" by the justice system. In fact, the slogan of the protest was "Save democracy. We support Marine," and the far-right leader's speech focused on discrediting the sentence—which proved that Le Pen was "at the center" of the embezzlement—and asserting that the French judicial system is politicized. "It's not justice, it's a political decision," she insisted.

The RN leader also gave a nod to US President Donald Trump, who criticized the sentence on Thursday. "It's a witch hunt," she asserted, using the same expression the US president used at the time. But Le Pen refuses to accept the comparison made by the French press between her and the US president. for the change in tone, the criticism of the system, and the call for street mobilization that the far-right leader has made in response to the sentence. "Ours will be a peaceful struggle, a democratic struggle. We follow the example of Martin Luther King, who defended civil rights," she dared to say.

Before the RN leader took the floor, videos supporting Le Pen from a dozen leaders of far-right parties from other countries were broadcast on giant screens, including Santiago Abascal, the leader of Vox; the president of Argentina, Javier Milei; the prime minister of Hungary, Viktor Orbán; and the vice president of the Italian government, Matteo Salvini. "The sentence is an unjust and arbitrary attack against democracy and the rule of law," Abascal asserted in Spanish. "Marine Le Pen is a symbol of resistance," he added.

Immediate disqualification

The sentence was a severe blow to Le Pen. Not because of the four years in prison—which she will not have to serve in any prison—but because of the five years of disqualification from office. The far right is complaining about the court's decision to impose the disqualification immediately rather than waiting for the final verdict. The court simply applied the law that provides for the immediate disqualification of politicians, regardless of whether the sentence can be appealed. Le Pen has already appealed the sentence, and the decision will be announced around the summer of 2026, although the option to appeal again remains.

The far-right managed to gather only 7,000 activists and supporters at Place Vauban in Paris, near the Invalides, according to a police count. The figure is far from the 10,000 participants expected by the party, which dismissed the official estimate and claimed that the expected 10,000 attended. Most of them were supporters who arrived by bus from various parts of France.

"The court's decision was very harsh because there are politicians who have done worse things, or terrorists, rapists, and pedophiles who have not been punished as much as she has," said Stefan, one of those attending the event. A few meters away, Céline acknowledged that she did not know whether Le Pen would be able to run for the presidential election or not, but assured that she would vote for the RN candidate, whoever it may be: "Whatever happens, I will not change my vote." The protest took place with tight security and without incident, except for the intrusion of several Femen activists, who were removed by security services.

Left-wing counter-demonstration

Two hours before the far-right rally began, some 3,000 people demonstrated in Place de la République, organized by left-wing organizations and supported by Jean-Luc Mélenchon's radical left party, La France Insoumise, and environmentalists. It was a counter-demonstration defending the rule of law and the separation of powers. "We've seen how Marine Le Pen stole money, and instead of being shocked and seeing the party's hypocrisy, many right-wing politicians now want to change the law so she can be a candidate," lamented one of the participants, Antoine. "She says she's innocent, but the reality is that she was found guilty of stealing. The case has been under investigation for 10 years; it's not a conviction that was made lightly," said another participant, Marie-France. The left will demonstrate again next Saturday.

This Sunday, former Prime Minister and leader of President Macron's party, Gabriel Attal, also gave a long-planned rally, but he took the opportunity to criticize Le Pen's attitude toward the sentence. "If you steal, you pay," Attal told her. The former Prime Minister called for respect for judges and institutions, and called the far-right leader a "groupie of Trumpism."