PARIS, Jan 13 (Bernama-dpa) - The appeal trial of French far-right leader Marine Le Pen against her conviction in a case involving the alleged misuse of European Union funds is set to begin on Tuesday, German Press Agency (dpa) reported.
A Paris court will reopen the case against Le Pen, 11 other defendants, and her National Rally party.
It is a make-or-break moment for the popular politician, as the outcome will determine whether Le Pen will be able to run as a candidate in the 2027 presidential election of France.
The case centres on the alleged sham employment of assistants to several French members of the European Parliament between 2004 and 2016.
Prosecutors argue that Le Pen's party used money from the European Parliament to pay staff who were working for her political party, rather than for parliamentary assistants. Le Pen denies wrongdoing.
In a first-instance ruling last March, Le Pen was found guilty. The court ordered that she be stripped of her eligibility to stand for public office for five years with immediate effect.
The court also sentenced her to two years in prison to be served under electronic monitoring, a further two years suspended, and imposed a fine of €100,000 (US$116,000).
If the appeals court upholds both the sentence and the immediate enforcement of the ban on holding office, Le Pen would not be able to run for the presidency, reshaping an election in which President Emmanuel Macron is barred from seeking another term.
-- BERNAMA-dpa
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