Skip next section Le Pen launches campaign with impassioned speech October 25, 2026

Le Pen launches campaign with impassioned speech

Marine Le Pen launched her fourth bid to become president of France on Sunday with a plea to "French patriots" to back her and her far-right National Rally (RN) in spring elections.

The grande dame of the far-right, Le Pen delivered an impassioned invocation of French spirit in Orleans, calling for "a renaissance" of the country's virtues and stressing its rich creative and intellectual history.

She blasted "Little Marquis Macron" and the state of France under his stewardship — both domestically and internationally — offering a fiery outline of the need to restore order, but also civility in the country, alongside promises of maintaining French (nuclear) defense and judicial sovereignty.

Le Pen invoked her nation's cultural and intellectual history while emphasizing the importance of protecting the French way of life Image: Alain Jocard/AFP

Le Pen said "we'll protect our…