Judge who convicted Le Pen given police protection as Macron denounces threats

French President Emmanuel Macron has defended the “independent” judiciary that handed Marine Le Pen a five-year ban on running for office amid revelations the judge who convicted the far-right leader has under police protection.

Marine Le Pen says she would use all possible legal avenues to stand in 2027 elections despite a ban on her running and hailed the promise of a speedy appeal of her criminal conviction. Picture: AFP

French President Emmanuel Macron has defended the “independent” judiciary that handed Marine Le Pen a five-year ban on running for office amid revelations the judge who convicted the far-right leader is under police protection.

Ms Le Pen was on Monday given a partly suspended jail term and a fine but, above all, an immediate ban on taking part in elections for five years after being convicted for a scheme at the EU parliament where assistants were actually working for her party.

She told newspaper, Le Parisien, that she would use “all avenues” of appeal to ensure she could run for president in 2027, including France’s Constitutional Court and the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) as well as the regular Paris court of appeal.

In his first reaction to Monday’s bombshell judgement, Mr Macron told members of the government that threats made against judges were “unbearable and intolerable” and that the nation’s judges “must be protected”.

France's President Emmanuel Macron arrives to visit the Notre-Dame with Queen Mary of Denmark on Wednesday. Picture: Thibault Camus / AFP

Mr Macron also said that “all litigants have the right to appeal”, according a participant at the meeting who asked not to be named.

“The law is the same for everyone,” government spokeswoman Sophie Primas said after the meeting, also confirming Mr Macron’s main message.

His comments come after Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau said an investigation had been opened into threats made against the panel of judges who convicted Ms Le Pen.

The presiding judge Benedicte de Perthuis is receiving protection, including increased patrols and regular rounds around her home, after receiving threats, a source close to the case told AFP.

Ms Le Pen, who has sought to turn the far-right National Rally (RN) into an electable force and rid it of the legacy of her father and its co-founder Jean-Marie Le Pen, describes herself as the “favourite” to succeed Mr Macron.

Her conviction sparked shockwaves in France but also in certain quarters around the world, with the likes of President Donald Trump, his billionaire adviser Elon Musk and the Kremlin expressing concern.

Marine Le Pen, left, and Jordan Bardella in 2024, in Paris. AP Photo/Thomas Padilla

Her RN party is planning to hold a protest on Sunday against the verdict, with Ms Le Pen saying she is innocent of all the charges.

In a boost to Ms Le Pen, the Paris Court of Appeal said on Tuesday it would examine the case within a time frame that could potentially allow her to contest the polls if her conviction is overturned or sentence changed.

She has remained characteristically defiant since the ruling was issued, giving media interviews and comparing her conviction to a “nuclear bomb” unleashed by the establishment.

“This is very good news, in which I can see the turmoil created by the ruling,” she told Le Parisien.

“I will appeal to the European Court of Human Rights and the Constitutional Council,” she said. “I will use all possible avenues of appeal.” The Constitutional Council, France’s highest constitutional authority, could rule on whether her elimination was incompatible with a voter’s right to choose.

The Strasbourg-based ECHR can also be called upon in exceptional circumstances to issue urgent rulings when all domestic appeals are exhausted.

Much attention in the last days has focused on a so-called “Plan B” where Jordan Bardella, 29, would take her place.

But Ms Le Pen said she still wanted to be president with Mr Bardella as prime minister.

“There’s no question today of considering a Plan B before even taking Plan A to the end,” she said.

She also said that the 2027 campaign, which would be her fourth, would likely be her last. “Unless I am elected,” she added.