Marie-Caroline Le Pen, older sister of Marine, candidate for the RN in Sarthe

POLITICS – One more Le Pen joins the legislative campaign. Current regional councilor for Île-de-France, Marie-Caroline Le Pen, sister of Marine Le Pen, announced this Sunday, June 16, that she was a candidate for the legislative elections in the fourth constituency of Sarthe.

“ It’s off to victory », tweeted the new recruit of the National Rally for the elections of June 30 and July 7. Older sister of Jean-Marie Le Pen’s three daughters, Marie-Caroline’s mission will be to win the vote in François Fillon’s former constituency.

A particularly strategic choice for the far-right party, which hopes to win back the constituency lost for 87 votes in the 2022 legislative elections. The RN candidate Raymond de Malherbe had in fact lost with 49.85% of the votes in the second round, leaving the rebellious candidate Élise Leboucher wins the election.

By choosing to invest Le Pen in the historic stronghold of Nicolas Sarkozy’s former Prime Minister, the National Rally is counting heavily on the surname of its candidate to achieve a higher score two years later. However, not everything is a foregone conclusion for Marie-Caroline Le Pen.

Candidate, but never victorious

Already a legislative candidate several times in her political career, the older sister of the president of the RN had lost each time for the National Front.

First in Hauts-de-Seine against Nicolas Sarkozy in March 1993. Two years later, during the legislative by-election, she reached the second round without winning the constituency. Marie-Caroline Le Pen was then invested by the National Front in the 8th constituency of Yvelines in June 1997, for a new defeat, despite coming first in the first round.

A series of disappointments and a divorce recorded with the Lepenist line of the party which had, in the long term, distanced him from his (political) family before gradually finding his way back to the FN, then the RN. Well helped by the gradual withdrawal of his father in favor of Marine Le Pen. In 2022, Marie-Caroline Le Pen experienced another defeat during a legislative election. In the 6th constituency of Hauts-de-Seine, where she came fifth in the first round, with 7.36% of the vote, her worst score in the legislative elections.

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