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PARIS (AP) 鈥� A Paris court started delivering a verdict Monday in an embezzlement case that could shake up French politics and derail far-right leader Marine Le Pen ‘s career.

Le Pen and 24 other officials from her National Rally are accused of having used money intended for European Union parliamentary aides to pay staff who worked for the party between 2004 and 2016, in violation of the 27-nation bloc鈥檚 regulations. Le Pen and her co-defendants deny wrongdoing.

The biggest concern for Le Pen is that the court may declare her ineligible to run for office 鈥渨ith immediate effect” 鈥� even if she appeals. That could prevent her from running for president in 2027. She has described such scenario as a 鈥減olitical death.鈥�

The Constitutional Council ruled Friday, in a separate case, that imposing the punishment immediately was constitutional.

With so many defendants, the verdict could take several hours for the chief judge to read out. Le Pen was in court. If found guilty, she and her co-defendants also face up to 10 years in prison 鈥� a verdict they could appeal. That would lead to another trial.

Le Pen, 56, was runner-up to President Emmanuel Macron in the 2017 and 2022 presidential elections, and her party鈥檚 electoral support has grown in recent years.

During the nine-week trial that took place in late 2024, she argued that ineligibility 鈥渨ould have the effect of depriving me of being a presidential candidate” and disenfranchise her supporters.

鈥淭here are 11 million people who voted for the movement I represent. So tomorrow, potentially, millions and millions of French people would see themselves deprived of their candidate in the election,鈥� she told the panel of three judges.

If Le Pen cannot run in 2027, her seeming natural successor would be Jordan Bardella, Le Pen鈥檚 29-year-old prot茅g茅 who succeeded her at the helm of the party in 2021.

Le Pen denied accusations she was at the head of 鈥渁 system鈥� meant to siphon off EU parliament money to benefit her party, which she led from 2011 to 2021.

She argued instead that it was acceptable to adapt the work of the aides paid by the European Parliament to the needs of the lawmakers, including some highly political work related to the party, which was called the National Front at the time.

While testifying, Le Pen told the court: 鈥淚 absolutely don鈥檛 feel I have committed the slightest irregularity, the slightest illegal move.鈥�

Hearings showed that some EU money was used to pay for Le Pen鈥檚 bodyguard 鈥� who was once her father’s bodyguard 鈥� as well as her personal assistant.

Prosecutors asked the court to declare Le Pen guilty, requesting a two-year prison sentence and a five-year period of ineligibility.

Le Pen said she felt they were 鈥渙nly interested鈥� in preventing her from running for president.

Prosecutors also requested a guilty verdict for all the other co-defendants, including various sentences of up to one year in prison and a 2-million-euro ($2.2 million) fine for the party.