France, Sept. 9 -- A Paris court has set January 2026 for Marine Le Pen's appeal trial over a corruption conviction, a decision that could make or break her hopes of running in the 2027 presidential election.

Marine Le Pen's political future will hang in the balance early next year, after a Paris court confirmed that her appeal trial in the so-called "parliamentary assistants" affair will take place from 13 January to 12 February 2026.

The decision on dates was, announced by the Paris Court of Appeal on Monday.

In March 2025, the three-time presidential candidate was handed a heavy sentence: five years of ineligibility, enforceable immediately, and four years in prison, two of them to be served under electronic tagging.

Unless overtur...