The Guardian view on the French presidential election campaign: only the far right will profit from division | Editorial

Mainstream politicians should remember that in the battle to defeat Jordan Bardella or Marine Le Pen, unity is strength Less than a year before the most important French presidential election in the history of the Fifth Republic, the phoney war is almost over. On 7 July, a court will decide whether to uphold Marine Le Pen’s appeal against a fraud conviction and a five-year ban from public office. Should she lose, her party’s 30‑year‑old president, Jordan Bardella, will be confirmed as Rassemblem