Jordan Bardella at the Rassemblement National rally in Mâcon, May 1, 2026. BRUNO AMSELLEM/DIVERGENCE FOR LE MONDE
Two months before the Paris appeals court is set to rule in the case involving the assistants of MEPs from the Front National – the former name of the far-right Rassemblement National (RN) – the party once again finds itself at the center of a judicial investigation related to its European activities. According to information from Agence France-Presse, confirmed by Le Monde on Thursday, May 7, the European Public Prosecutor's Office opened a probe "on suspicion of fraud" involving European Union funds, a source close to the case said. Both the European Parliament and the European Public Prosecutor's Office declined to comment when contacted.
At the heart of the case, first reported in November 2025 by weekly newspaper Le Canard Enchaîné, are media training sessions provided between 2019 and 2021 to several MEPs in the Identity and Democracy (ID) group, which was then dominated by the RN. According to Le Canard Enchaîné, more than €130,000 in EU funds was paid out by the ID group primarily benefiting Jordan Bardella, purportedly to "improve [his] communication on European news," ahead of the 2022 French presidential campaign. At the time, the young MEP was serving as interim president of his party and was the main spokesperson for its candidate, Marine Le Pen.
