Le Pen proposes renaming her far-right party ‘National Rally’

11 March 2018, 6:02 pm

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PARIS — French far-right leader Marine Le Pen proposes changing the name of the National Front party co-founded by her father to National Rally.

The renaming proposal culminates Le Pen’s closing speech at the party’s two-day congress in Lille, the capital of the National Front’s northern heartland.

Le Pen says the name the party has had since its 1972 founding is linked to a “glorious” past, but serves as a psychological barrier for potential new members and voters.

The new name must be approved by members in a mail vote.

It is part of a broader makeover Le Pen hopes will help boost the party to power. Le Pen has worked since taking over in 2011 to remove the stigma of racism and anti-Semitism attached to the National Front.

— AP