France: trial against Le Pen
The figurehead of the French right is facing five years in prison and a ban from politics. The public prosecutor's office has accused Marine Le Pen and other party leaders of the former Front National of using EU funds to employ staff who worked directly in France on party affairs between 2004 and 2016 - which constitutes embezzlement of EU funds. A litmus test for the polarised French public.
Unintentional campaign help à la Trump
Jean-Éric Schoettl, former secretary general of the French Constitutional Council, warns in Le Figaro against banning Le Pen from holding public office:
“ This would widen the gap between the 'establishment' and the 11 million people who feel excluded and downgraded and who make up the RN's core voters. We saw the consequences of this in the United States with the re-election of Donald Trump: many ordinary Americans saw the proceedings against Trump as a push by the elites against their candidate, making them all the more inclined to vote for him. In France, too, the sense that the 'system' wants to remove a figurehead of the popular protest from the public stage can only strengthen the vote 'against the system'.”
The circumstantial evidence weighs heavily
Le Pen shouldn't try to play the persecuted innocent here, the Süddeutsche Zeitung comments:
“This is about rules and laws and justice. When Le Pen complains that she is being politically persecuted, it's nothing but conspiratorial whining. After all, what could OLAF, the European Anti-Fraud Office, have against Marine Le Pen politically? And what about the four examining magistrates who investigated the case and then all described the same overall scenario? ... The circumstantial evidence is overwhelming. Of course it would be better if Le Pen were beaten in elections, at the ballot box, over and over again. But if she ends up putting herself out of the running, what can be done?”