Le Pen reaffirms support for Bardella, accused over antisemitic messages

Marine Le Pen has publicly reaffirmed her support for Jordan Bardella, despite new accusations concerning antisemitic and conspiratorial messages attributed to the leader of her party.

Three days after the investigative platform Mediapart published a second article on the matter, Le Pen told the newspaper La Tribune Dimanche that she has "complete confidence" in Bardella, whom she considers the person who could lead the government in the event of her victory in the 2027 presidential elections.

Le Pen had also defended Bardella after Mediapart’s first publication of the accusations. During a public event, she described the claims as "madness" and rejected the idea that they could damage her support for Bardella.

According to Mediapart, the messages date from when Bardella was 17 or 18 years old. In some of them, according to the investigative outlet, he expressed antisemitic claims and conspiracy theories, accusing Jews and Zionists of seeking to dominate or oppress other peoples.

Mediapart also reports that Bardella had accused several ministers in François Hollande’s government of putting the interests of Israel and the banking sector above the interests of France.

Bardella and Le Pen are among the leading figures of the French nationalist right, while the 2027 presidential elections are expected to be one of the main political battles in France.