Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy has been officially stripped of the Legion of Honour, the nation’s highest distinction, following the confirmation of his corruption conviction last year. The decision was outlined in an official decree published on Sunday.
Sarkozy, who led France from 2007 to 2012, becomes only the second former president in history to lose the award, following Nazi collaborator Philippe Pétain, who was convicted of high treason in 1945.
The conservative politician has faced a cascade of legal troubles since leaving office. In December 2023, France’s highest appeals court upheld a 2021 lower court ruling that found Sarkozy guilty of attempting to bribe a judge and influence an ongoing investigation into his 2007 campaign finances. As part of the sentence, he was ordered to wear an electronic ankle tag for 12 months, a measure that was lifted earlier this month.
Sarkozy takes case to ECHR
Despite the setback, Sarkozy has taken his case to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), seeking to overturn the conviction. His lawyer, Patrice Spinosi, acknowledged the revocation of the Legion of Honour but emphasised that the appeal is still pending.
“If the ECHR rules against France, it would imply reviewing both the criminal conviction and the decision to exclude Mr. Sarkozy from the order,” Spinosi said on Sunday.
President Emmanuel Macron reportedly opposed the decision to revoke the award, citing Sarkozy’s status as a former head of state. “It is very important that former presidents are respected,” Macron argued. However, under the rules governing the Legion of Honour, any recipient definitively sentenced to at least one year in prison must be excluded from the order.
The revocation places Sarkozy among a controversial list of former recipients stripped of the honour, including Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, disgraced Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein, and cyclist Lance Armstrong.
Sarkozy’s legal challenges are far from over. In 2021, he was also convicted in a separate case of illegal campaign financing during his failed 2012 re-election bid. More recently, he has been on trial over allegations that he accepted millions in illegal campaign contributions from the late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi. A verdict in that case is expected in September. Prosecutors have requested a seven-year prison sentence. Sarkozy continues to deny all charges.
Despite his legal troubles, Sarkozy remains an influential figure in French conservative politics. However, the revocation of the Legion of Honour marks a significant fall from grace for the once powerful leader.
