French far-right leader Bardella threatens to sue over new antisemitism allegations
As he fights for his political survival, French media says Le Pen's 31-year-old deputy scrubbed comments from old Facebook account after report on alleged 2013 remarks against Jews
PARIS — French far-right leader Jordan Bardella on Friday threatened new legal action against a media outlet after a report accused him of deleting alleged antisemitic messages from an old Facebook account.
The 31-year-old top ally of French presidential candidate Marine Le Pen has been fighting for his political future after allegations emerged that he made antisemitic remarks as a teenager.
In September, French investigative website Mediapart reported Bardella made remarks in 2013 disparaging Jewish people. It based the report on comments in private chats that it said it had authenticated.
Bardella has denied the allegations, saying that he does not “have a Facebook account” and had not used the social network “for a very long time.”
But French weekly Le Canard enchaine said on Friday that Bardella had deleted data from one of his two Facebook accounts as soon as the alleged 2013 writings were made public.
The publication said it had “extracts of private conversations” showing that “all the data” from an account Bardella used during his early years as an activist in the National Front — as Le Pen’s party was then known — was deleted between September 28 and October 2.
Bardella called the Le Canard enchaine report “completely false.”
“A further defamation suit will be filed in response,” he said on X.
Bardella, head of the National Rally, as the party is now called, has already filed a defamation complaint against Mediapart over the original claims.
A member of Bardella’s team said he had “never logged into any Facebook account nor deleted any messages,” arguing that this was “further proof of the ongoing manipulation.”
The allegations against Bardella come just six months out from the election where voters will choose a replacement for President Emmanuel Macron, with Le Pen leading opinion polls. Bardella is tipped to be prime minister if she wins the presidency.
He has been instrumental in implementing Le Pen’s strategy of “de-demonisation” to try and rid the far-right party of the toxic legacy of its founder, her father Jean-Marie Le Pen, who was openly antisemitic.
Bardella made a visit to Israel in 2025, the first by a French far-right leader, in a bid to demonstrate the RN’s new credentials.