The investigation into the far-right leader comes as former National Rally chief Marine Le Pen battles an embezzlement conviction that bars her from running in the 2027 presidential election.
PARIS — The European Public Prosecutor’s Office has launched an investigation into alleged misappropriation of EU funds linked to media training sessions for National Rally leader Jordan Bardella, according to an official from the far-right party.
The probe follows a complaint filed by the AC!! Anti-Corruption organization last December. The National Rally official denied the allegations against Bardella.
“The ‘media training’ services were delivered by [a] supplier and complied with European Parliament rules, and were approved by the European Parliament authorities on European topics, for several MEPs belonging to the National Rally group … including Jordan Bardella,” said the official, who was granted anonymity to discuss the sensitive topic.
The services were stopped ahead of the 2022 presidential election, the official said.
In 2022 Le Pen reached the second round of the presidential election before losing to incumbent French President Emmanuel Macron. Bardella and Le Pen are the current front-runners ahead of next year’s presidential election.
According to several French news outlets, the complaint against Bardella was first lodged with France’s National Financial Prosecutor’s office before being transferred to the European Public Prosecutor. The National Rally official said the complaint represented “political instrumentation” of the French justice system.
The National Financial Prosecutor’s office and the EPPO did not respond to POLITICO’s requests for comment.
The new probe comes as National Rally parliamentary leader Marine Le Pen is hoping to overturn an embezzlement conviction that bars her from running in the 2027 presidential election. The National Rally’s presidential plans are in limbo until her appeal is decided in July.