PARIS — A French court on Monday (March 31) barred French far-right leader Marine Le Pen from running in the 2027 presidential election after she was convicted of embezzlement, in a seismic ruling that could fuel global tensions over judicial efforts to police politics.

The French court's ruling was a catastrophic setback for Le Pen, 56. The National Rally (RN) party chief is one of the most prominent figures of the European far right, and a front-runner in polls for France's 2027 contest.