Trump calls for Marine Le Pen to be freed (but she is not in prison)

American President Donald Trump has posted a message of support for French far-right leader Marine Le Pen, calling for her ‘liberation’ although she is not actually in prison. 

The president made the comments yesterday (April 3) in a lengthy post on his ‘Truth Social’ social media platform. 

It comes after Marine Le Pen was fined, sentenced to two years of wearing an electronic tag, and being ruled ineligible to run any elections for five years effective immediately, for embezzlement of EU funds. 

“I don't know Marine Le Pen but I appreciate that she has worked hard for many years,” said Mr Trump on the social media platform. 

“She has suffered setbacks but she has kept going and now, just before what would be a Great Victory, they are attacking her on a minor charge that she probably knew nothing about. Sounds like an accounting error to me,” he added. 

“This is so bad for France and for the Great People of France (...) FREE MARINE LE PEN!’” he added (capital letters his own). 

A ‘witch hunt’ against Le Pen

President Trump also said that Ms Le Pen was the victim of a "witch hunt" by "European leftists who are using the judicial weapon to silence freedom of expression.” 

US vice-president JD Vance also spoke of the conviction. 

“She's ahead in some polls. And on a particularly minor charge...they're trying to put her in jail and keep her off the ballot,” he said in an interview on US television channel Newsmax. 

He also claimed that Ms Le Pen was not directly involved in the embezzling of funds, going directly against the ruling of the French court. 

Mr Vance together with Elon Musk, a frequent visitor to the White House and government advisor, have openly supported far-right parties in Europe. 

Read more: What do Trump and other world leaders say about Le Pen office ban decision?

Cordiality not returned 

Despite this open support, comments made by Ms Le Pen in the direction of the American government – in light of newly introduced-tariffs – have not been so warm.

She called the imposition of EU-wide tariffs by the US as “brutal and benefiting the United States alone,” in a post on social media platform X. 

“We could have built new rules for international trade without the denial of the hard-line globalists,” she added. 

Instead, she has called for France and its EU allies to embrace “intelligent protectionism” in light of the new US measures.

Read more: Trump tariffs: Americans in France hit by dollar drop

Has ruling affected far-right popularity? 

The fallout following the ruling against Ms Le Pen and the far-right Rassemblement National (RN) could be seismic. 

She has appealed her ban from running in elections, which is set to be heard in the summer of 2026 – the timing of the hearing meaning a successful appeal will allow her to run in the 2027 presidential election. 

Recent opinion polls showed that the majority of French people were in support of the sentence. 

However, the RN has stated that since Monday, over 10,000 new members have joined the party.