The party needs more than 4 million euros to finance its campaign.
The National Rally will launch a new loan from its activists to finance its campaign for the European elections, reveal franceinfo and The Parisian Tuesday October 31. The process is currently being prepared, but cannot be officially launched until December, the official date for the opening of campaign accounts.
The party aims to raise 4.3 million euros, the maximum sum that the State reimburses to each party reaching 3% of the votes in the European elections. Its president Jordan Bardella displays much greater ambition, he insists: “We want to finish on top.”
So far, no French bank wants to lend money to the far-right party. The party treasurer sent requests to the country’s six largest private banks “without much hope” and has already received three refusals.
More public meetings than large meetings
The RN has already borrowed money from its activists three times: in 2019, 2020 and 2022. Each time, successfully. The rate is attractive since there is 5% interest. In 2022, Marine Le Pen’s party had received many more proposals than its needs. The RN management is therefore confident. “People whose loans are coming due ask us to replace their money”, assures a party executive to franceinfo. The party intends to reimburse all of its activists by 2027.
The RN’s strategy for this election is above all to seek out abstainers with a campaign around purchasing power and immigration control. The party will mainly organize public meetings. There will only be a few big meetings starting in February. “It’s expensive and ultimately, it brings in few votes!”confides a party executive to franceinfo.
The National Rally receives 10.1 million euros per year each year, in proportion to the results of previous legislative elections. A significant part of this sum was used to repay early the balance of 6 million euros on its Russian loan. This loan had earned Marine Le Pen’s party accusations of collusion with the Kremlin. Paying it back was a “priority” for Jordan Bardella, who no longer wanted this to confuse his campaign.