Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy "vigorously" denied any wrongdoing as he appeared in court on Friday, November 24, to appeal a one-year jail sentence for illegal campaign financing.
In the so-called "Bygmalion affair", the former head of state was sentenced to one year in prison in September 2021 on charges that his right-wing party, then known as the UMP, worked with a public relations firm to hide the true cost of his 2012 re-election bid. Prosecutors said Sarkozy spent nearly €43 million on his 2012 campaign, almost double the permitted amount of €22.5 million. The appeal trial began on November 8.
"I vigorously deny any criminal responsibility," the 68-year-old said at the Paris Court of Appeal. "I deny, and I hope to demonstrate, that I ever had any knowledge of fraud, that I ever asked for fraud or even benefited from fraud," he said at the start of questioning. "If I didn't ask for anything, if I didn't know about it, where's the intentional offense?" Sarkozy said pugnaciously. "I want the truth," he added.
Sarkozy has faced a litany of legal problems since his sole term in office from 2007 until 2012 and has been charged separately with corruption, bribery, influence-peddling as well as breaking campaign financing laws. In October, Sarkozy was charged in a separate witness tampering case relating to alleged Libyan financing of his 2007 presidential win.
Despite his legal woes, Sarkozy is an influential figure on the French right, courted by politicians and writing books that are major publishing events. In his latest work, Sarkozy said he would like his protégé and current Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin to succeed Emmanuel Macron as French president, noting his "evident qualities." Sarkozy has also maintained a relationship with Macron and French media have said the pair have dined together on numerous occasions to talk politics.