PARIS − French far-right leader Marine Le Pen was convicted of embezzlement on Monday and handed an immediate five-year ban from public office, a sentence that will bar her from running in the 2027 presidential race unless she successfully appeals beforehand.

A court ruling her guilty of fraud for the misuse of European Union funds means the front-runner to replace Emanuelle Macron as French President has been deemed ineligible for public office.

French far-right leader Marine Le Pen was handed a five-year ban from holding public office after being convicted of misappropriation of funds by a court in France, almost certainly preventing her run for president in 2027.