French investigative outlet Mediapart reported that private-chat messages containing antisemitic remarks were allegedly written by Jordan Bardella in the summer of 2013, when he was 17 or 18. Bardella had joined the party then known as the National Front about a year and a half earlier. Mediapart says it authenticated the messages.
Bardella, now 31 and leader of the far-right National Rally (RN), rejected the allegations in a post on X, calling them “blatant falsehoods” and saying he would take legal action against Mediapart. Marine Le Pen also told reporters she believed the messages were fake and accused the outlet of dirty tricks.
The report concerns alleged private messages from more than a decade ago, not comments made during the current campaign. France 24 says Bardella has been central to Le Pen’s effort to make the RN more electorally acceptable and distance it from the legacy of her father, Jean-Marie Le Pen, who founded and led the National Front and repeatedly made antisemitic remarks. In 2025, Bardella made a visit to Israel that France 24 describes as unprecedented for a French far-right leader.
The allegations emerged as France looks toward the 2027 presidential election. A poll published Monday put Le Pen well ahead in the first round and showed her on course to win a second round against any potential opponent. She also called the RN’s Senate election result historic: the party won enough seats to form a parliamentary group in the upper house for the first time. French senators are chosen by local elected officials.
Mediapart maintains that it verified the messages; Bardella says they are fabricated and threatens legal action. The supplied report does not cite a court ruling establishing whether the messages are authentic.