Le Pen tells French Muslims thinking of leaving if she wins: it's your country

Marine Le Pen has declared that French Jovenlandeses who are thinking of leaving if she is elected are wrong, because it is their country and they are French. In the same remarks she distanced herself from La France Insoumise (LFI), stating that her party respects all French people.

## What Marine Le Pen said

The leader of the National Rally (**RN**), **Marine Le Pen**, has stated that French Jovenlandeses who are thinking of leaving the country if she comes to power are wrong. "It is their country, they are French," she declared, in remarks shared on social media.

The message has a clear target: that section of the population which, in the event of a hypothetical electoral victory for Le Pen, has expressed its intention to leave **France**. The far-right leader not only rejects that departure, but asserts the national belonging of those considering it.

## The comparison with LFI

In the same message, Le Pen drew an explicit comparison with **La France Insoumise** (LFI), the left-wing party led by **Jean-Luc Mélenchon**. "We are not like LFI: we respect all French people," she said.

The statement seeks to project an image of institutional respect towards all citizens, in contrast with the left-wing party. It is a familiar rhetorical move in the **RN**'s normalization strategy, which tries to distance itself from the stereotype of an exclusionary party.

## Why this statement matters

The context is a France gripped by debates over identity, secularism and integration. Le Pen's position on French Jovenlandeses has historically been one of the most controversial points of her political programme.

For her to now say that those thinking of leaving are "wrong" because "it is their country" marks a tactical shift. She does not abandon her policies, but changes the framing: she no longer speaks of expulsion or incompatibility, but of staying and belonging. The message is aimed both at that electorate and at a broader audience she wants to reassure.

The statement gives no details on what concrete measures she would apply to these citizens if she governed. She only says they should not leave and that they are French.