An appeal due early next year will determine whether Le Pen can run - otherwise, the expectation is that Bardella will step in. Known then as the National Front (FN), it has since become a decisive force in French politics. Jean-Marie Le Pen was convicted several times for Holocaust denial and was an unrepentant extremist on race. In his interview with Nick Robinson, Bardella distanced himself from Jean-Marie Le Pen's comments, as have many other RN politicians in recent years. Reuters It remains to be seen who leads the RN into the next election: Le Pen or Bardella