As in other legal dramas featuring populist leaders, though, the case against Le Pen appears difficult to prove. It revolves around allegedly party-political work done by EU parliamentary assistants whose job is, Le Pen argued in her defence, “political by definition”. Yet France’s pro-EU Democratic Movement (MoDem) party was found guilty of similar offences earlier this year; according to the lawyer who represented MoDem, it is “difficult to draw a line between work done for the MEP and work done for the party”. Moreover, the lawyer described how “compared to the case involving MoDem, which is very pro-Europe, the atmosphere of the RN one will be different since they are Eurosceptics.”

Unsurprisingly, the MoDem case did not generate anything like the publicity or media speculation raised by the Le Pen trial. Yet in previous trials of populists — notably that of former Czech prime minister and opposition leader Andrej Babiš, who was acquitted of EU fraud earlier this year and is now flying high in the polls — an apparent assumption of guilt among mainstream media severely backfired following a “not guilty” verdict. Le Pen herself is unlikely to face a serious dip in popularity as a result of the trial. With the story of “persecution” already being told by National Rally such a potent populist message, it’s understandable that Le Pen plans “to be in court on as many days as possible”.

For politicians such as Le Pen, Babiš, Trump or Salvini, being in the dock burnishes an anti-establishment image. All that would change, though, if Le Pen is found guilty and barred from public office. Such a political earthquake would shake the entire EU. The next two months, then, will be a vital test of the ability of a progressive establishment to fairly judge populist politicians.