Marine Le Pen backs Jordan Bardella as running mate despite antisemitism claims

Le Pen says Bardella would be prime minister if she wins in May, while he rejects the accusations published by Mediapart.

By Felo News Desk · Published Tue, 29 Sep 2026 22:00:14 GMT

French far‑right leader Marine Le Pen and her National Rally party publicly supported their presidential election running mate Jordan Bardella on Tuesday, despite media reports that he authored antisemitic remarks as a teenager.

What happened

Jordan Bardella, 31, is the National Rally president and Le Pen’s declared partner for the May 2027 presidential election. Investigative website Mediapart released a series of comments allegedly written by Bardella more than ten years ago, claiming that "all the banks are owned by Jews" and echoing other conspiracy theories about Jewish financial control. The outlet said the messages date to his time as a teen member of the National Front, the party founded by Le Pen’s father, Jean‑Marie Le Pen.

What the reports add

Both New Indian Express and the Los Angeles Times note that Bardella "vigorously denied" authorship of the comments.
The New Indian Express specifies that the allegations were published on Monday, September 28, 2026.
The Los Angeles Times adds that the remarks were attributed to Bardella during his teenage years, and that Mediapart said the exchanges were drawn from private written communications but did not say whether they were emails or another format.
Both outlets report that Mediapart said it independently authenticated the exchanges, without detailing the method.

What was said

"It’s the beginnings of an all‑out war, of attempts to destabilize the presidential campaign, which — I’m telling you — will target us one after another," Bardella said.

"We have both put on our Kevlar suits, because this is heavy stuff coming down on us," Le Pen said.

"This manipulation is about as subtle as a charcuterie convention," Le Pen added.

"We are not going to let them do this to us!" she said.

"These remarks are completely delusional. They are not mine," Bardella told the press, describing the allegations as a "dirty‑tricks operation" and announcing a libel action against Mediapart.

Marine Le Pen told reporters that Bardella would serve as prime minister if she wins the presidency in May.

How it came about

The controversy follows a Felo News article published on 28 September 2026, in which Bardella denied the same set of alleged messages and said he would pursue legal action. The current allegations revive longstanding concerns about the National Rally’s ties to the legacy of Jean‑Marie Le Pen, who repeatedly denied the Holocaust and faced multiple hate‑speech convictions before his death in 2025.

Key facts

Jordan Bardella denied authoring the antisemitic comments attributed to him by Mediapart. (newindianexpress.com)
Mediapart published the alleged comments on Monday, saying they were written more than a decade ago. (latimes.com)
Marine Le Pen said Bardella would be prime minister if she wins the presidency in May. (newindianexpress.com)