Marine Le Pen has defiantly claimed she will run for French president for the fourth time in the country's 2027 election without a tag, eligible to run after a court lifted an electoral ban.

The right-wing leader, her party the National Rally and 23 co-defendants were found guilty of embezzling money in March 2025, stemming from an institutional complaint dating back more than a decade.

Sentenced to house arrest and hit with a four-year electoral ban, an appeals court upheld the French politician's conviction for embezzling European Parliament funds, but reduced her ban on running in a public office to just 15 more months.

Ms Le Pen told TF1 television: “Tonight, I am a candidate in the presidential election", ending uncertainty over who would lead the party into next year’s contest.

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The 57-year-old added that she would appeal the ruling by the Paris appeals court, which earlier found her guilty of misusing €4.3million (£3.7million) in public funds at the European Parliament between 2004 and 2016.

The three judges reduced her five-year ban from public office to 45 months, 30 of which are suspended.

Ms Le Pen's 15 months of ineligibility since her first conviction in March 2025 expire almost to the day of the upcoming vote, making her eligible to stand in April 2027.

The remaining year of her sentence is to be served under an electronic surveillance tag, along with a €100,000 (£87,000) fine - although the tag cannot be applied until the result of her appeal to the Court of Cassation.

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