The French presidential race has begun. For the first time since 2017, Emmanuel Macron won’t be a part of it.

And for the first time in her career, Marine Le Pen is the clear frontrunner, even after her conviction in a corruption scandal almost prevented her from running for public office.

Prior to the final ruling, her second-in-command, Jordan Bardella, had tried to force his way in as the strongest National Rally presidential candidate, believing that Le Pen’s judicial vulnerability might translate an into electoral one - a costly ambition for which he is now paying, after Le Pen fired his closest associates inside the party.

In short, the 2027 race is widely believed to be Le Pen’s to lose, after she launched her campaign around the themes of immigration and Islam.

She plans to hold two referendums: one asking whether the French population supports her plan to restrict immigration, and another on banning the hijab in public spaces. Both would seek to cement the legitimacy of structural racism and Islamophobia through majoritarian approval.