French election authorities scrutinize Jordan Bardella's 2024 European campaign funding
A few lines in an official document could have significant consequences for Jordan Bardella, the president of the Rassemblement National party (RN, far right) and a potential candidate for the French presidential election in 2027, should his mentor Marine Le Pen be unable to run. The leader of the far right is under scrutiny by the National Commission for Campaign Accounts and Political Financing for a series of loans taken out during his campaign for the European elections in June 2024, according to public documents analyzed by Le Monde.
The RN has accumulated a number of cases involving the circumvention of political financing rules over the past 15 years. New cases continue to emerge, despite the setbacks in court. In March, Le Pen and several party officials were convicted in the case of the party's fake European parliamentary assistant jobs. In 2023, the RN was also fined for inflating costs for campaign materials and improperly using public funds to cover the expenses in the 2012 parliamentary elections.
This time, the Commission is focusing on loans Bardella secured from individuals, totaling nearly €4.5 million. The authority overseeing the integrity of elections in France has been closely monitoring the issue since it identified irregularities in the accounts of other RN candidates in several elections between 2021 and 2023. However, it cannot independently verify the true origin of the funds officially lent to candidates, as reiterated by its president, Jean-Philippe Vachia.
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