Le Pen Defends Running Mate Amid Antisemitism Allegations

French far-right leader Marine Le Pen, her National Rally party and its allies closed ranks Tuesday behind her presidential running mate, Jordan Bardella, in the face of media accusations that he made antisemitic remarks as a young party member.

Bardella, whom Le Pen has said would be her prime minister if she wins the presidency next year, vigorously denied authorship of the comments about supposed Jewish banking monopolies and other antisemitic conspiracy theories that investigative website Mediapart attributed to him and published Monday. Mediapart stated the comments were written more than a decade ago, during years when Bardella, now the National Rally president, was a teenager and a member of the party's predecessor, the National Front.

The National Front was founded by Le Pen's father, Jean-Marie Le Pen, who repeatedly denied the Holocaust and was convicted multiple times for hate speech.

Allegations of antisemitism are particularly sensitive for the National Rally, as Le Pen has spent years trying to distance the party from her father's controversial legacy. To win the presidency, she must overcome obstacles that previously blocked her father's ambitions, including associations with individuals who collaborated with France's Nazi occupiers during World War II and his multiple convictions for antisemitism, discrimination, and inciting racial violence.

Le Pen, Bardella, and their ally Eric Ciotti appeared together at a previously scheduled gathering of their lawmakers to project unity. They described Mediapart's allegations as the initial phase of an effort to destabilize Le Pen's campaign to succeed President Emmanuel Macron, who is constitutionally barred from seeking a third consecutive term.

"We have both put on our Kevlar suits, because this is heavy stuff coming down on us," Le Pen said, calling the alleged manipulation "about as subtle as a charcuterie convention." She added, "We are not going to let them do this to us!" With applause from their lawmakers, she expressed "absolute confidence" in Bardella, who is popular with young voters and has a significant social media following.

Mediapart reported that the comments attributed to Bardella were drawn from private written exchanges, but did not specify the format or how they were obtained, though the website said it independently authenticated them. Mediapart, launched in 2008, has become a prominent investigative news outlet in France with over a quarter-million subscribers.

Bardella stated he has initiated a libel action against Mediapart, describing the allegations as "a dirty-tricks operation." He told broadcaster CNews, "These remarks are completely delusional. They are not mine."

At this early stage of the election cycle, Le Pen is considered a front-runner to succeed Macron. Her campaign had been relatively smooth since an appeals court ruling in July cleared her path for a fourth presidential run by shortening a ban on seeking public office related to embezzlement of public funds. Bardella, considered Le Pen's protégé, had been positioned to potentially replace her as the party's candidate had the ban been upheld. He described the current antisemitism allegations as a plot devised to thwart his chances in that hypothetical scenario.