Le Pen insists ‘we will win’ despite ban

PARIS: French far-right leader Marine Le Pen insisted on Tuesday that her movement could still win 2027 presidential elections after she was banned from standing for office as part of an embezzlement conviction.

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She was given a prison term and fine on Monday after being convicted of a fake jobs scheme at the EU parliament, a verdict that sparked an international echo including from US President Donald Trump.

But the most serious part of the conviction was a five-year ban--effective immediately--on standing for office, which eliminates her from the race.

Addressing her lawmakers on Tuesday, Le Pen, who considered herself the favourite in the 2027 election in which President Emmanuel Macron cannot stand again, accused "the system" of rolling out "the nuclear bomb" to end her presidential hopes.