France’s far-right supremo Marine Le Pen hit the campaign trail on Wednesday, fresh off her announcement she would run for president despite an embezzlement conviction.
Surrounded by crowds and journalists in the western town of La Fleche, that was won by her National Rally (RN) party in municipal elections, Le Pen brushed aside criticism of her candidacy.
Convicted again on appeal on Tuesday over a fake European Parliament jobs scame, she was cleared to run for office but said she would take the case to France’s highest court, allowing her to avoid wearing an electronic tag on the campaign trail.
“The court has restored my eligibility. I am innocent, and I am filing an appeal to the Court of Cassation to prove my innocence,” she said.
“You have to take risks to win,” she added.
The 57-year-old is set to run for president for a fourth time in next year’s elections her anti-immigration party views as its best chance yet to take power.
She brushed off the risk the Court of Cassation would reject her appeal before the vote and criticism of her candidacy, steering the narrative to policies she hopes will win her the Elysee.
“I’m not going to spend the presidential campaign giving you legal analyses,” she said.
“If my political opponents have no other arguments than that, it means that on substance they have absolutely nothing to offer the French,” she added.
While she was greeted by supporters in La Fleche, she also faced boos from several dozen left-wing activists holding signs reading “Le Pen convicted”.
She hit the trail side by side with her 30-year-old lieutenant Jordan Bardella who had been waiting in the wings in case Le Pen was barred from running. He has been tipped as her prime minister if she wins.
Highly popular on the right, Bardella said he felt “neither relief nor disappointment” at not being his party’s candidate.
He said he was “delighted” Le Pen was running and that they would “continue to work hand in hand”.
