Marine Le Pen is running for president in an ankle monitor
Just when you think politics cannot get any more cinematic, France gives us a presidential frontrunner who literally has to charge her leg before going to bed.
Yes, Marine Le Pen, the face of France's nationalist right, was just sentenced to wear an electronic monitoring bracelet for embezzling European Parliament funds. And yes, her immediate reaction was to announce she is still running for president next year.
Normally, getting convicted of stealing public money and being placed on house arrest would pause a political career. But Le Pen is treating her new ankle accessory like a rugged campaign asset. Because she is appealing the verdict, the sentence is suspended, meaning she can legally run while her lawyers do their thing.
This means the French presidential debates might feature a candidate whose GPS tracker starts beeping if she stays on stage past curfew.
French democracy has officially entered its peak reality TV era, and the ratings are going to be spectacular.
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