Court Clears Le Pen to Run as Protesters Disrupt Campaign Launch

Marine Le Pen faced disruption at her campaign launch in western France on July 8 when roughly 100 protesters chanted "Give back the money," invoking her conviction for misusing EU funds. Hours earlier, an appeals court upheld that conviction but reduced her ban on holding office, effectively clearing her path to run in 2027. Gendarmes dispersed demonstrators to allow her and party president Jordan Bardella to continue.