Donald Trump Slams Marine Le Pen’s Conviction as a “Witch Hunt” Meant to Block Her From 2027 Election

U.S. President Donald Trump has strongly reacted to the conviction of Marine Le Pen by the French judiciary, calling it politically motivated. In a lengthy message posted Thursday, April 3, on his social network Truth Social, he called for her “release,” denouncing what he described as a “witch hunt” designed to prevent her from running in France’s 2027 presidential election.

“I don’t know Marine Le Pen personally, but I respect the fact that she has worked hard for so many years,” the U.S. president wrote Thursday night into Friday. “She’s faced setbacks, but kept going, and now, just before what would have been a Great Victory, they’re going after her over a minor charge she likely knew nothing about – to me, it looks like an accounting error,” he added, condemning a decision he called “so bad for France and for the Great People of France.” His message concluded with a capitalized call to action: “FREE MARINE LE PEN!”

Trump and Allies Denounce Judicial Weaponization

Trump never directly mentioned the French judiciary or government, but broadly accused “European leftists” of misusing the judicial system to silence political opposition. “They are weaponizing justice to suppress free speech,” he declared, echoing criticism already voiced by far-right leaders across Europe and the U.S.

His vice president, JD Vance, also came to the defense of the National Rally leader. Speaking Thursday on the conservative Newsmax channel, he said, “She’s leading in some polls. And over a particularly minor accusation (…) they’re trying to put her in jail and keep her off the ballot.” He also falsely claimed that Le Pen wasn’t personally “involved” in the case. “That’s not democracy,” he insisted.

A Heavy Sentence With Political Ramifications

On Monday, March 31, the Paris criminal court sentenced Marine Le Pen to four years in prison (two of which are to be served under electronic monitoring), a €100,000 fine, and five years of ineligibility, with immediate enforcement. Judges found her guilty of embezzling public funds in the case involving European parliamentary assistants, estimating that around €2.9 million were misappropriated between 2004 and 2016 in a system established during her father Jean-Marie Le Pen’s leadership.

On Thursday evening, the president of the National Rally group in the French National Assembly also responded to the U.S. announcement of new tariffs on European imports, calling for “smart protectionism” in Europe. She criticized what she described on X as “brutal decisions benefiting only the United States, when we could have built new rules for global trade without bowing to rabid globalists.”