Le Pen Loses Appeal Against Ineligibility

France’s Council of State has rejected the National Rally de facto leader Marine Le Pen’s appeal against her immediate ineligibility, which was handed down in March.

The case revolves around the employment of MEP assistants by the Front National – now National Rally (RN).

Between 2004 and 2016, the party funnelled €2.9 million from the European Parliament straight to its Paris headquarters, paying staff who were nominally parliamentary assistants but in practice worked for the national party.

Le Pen had challenged her removal from the electoral roll, asking the Council of State to refer a priority preliminary ruling on constitutionality (QPC) to the Constitutional Council.