France launches legal action over suspected foreign digital interference targeting LFI municipal candidates

French Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez announced on May 20 that a legal action has been launched over suspected foreign digital interference targeting candidates of La France Insoumise (LFI) during the 2026 municipal elections. Responding to a question in the National Assembly from LFI deputy François Piquemal, Nuñez described the interference as "grave" and said "une action judiciaire est engagée." He also promised that the report on interferences observed during the municipal election would be made public.

French authorities suspect Israeli company BlackCore of enabling the interference operation, according to franceinfo. BlackCore's website, since removed, described itself as an "entreprise d'élite spécialisée dans l'influence (...) conçue pour l'ère moderne de la guerre d'information" ("elite company specialized in influence (...) designed for the modern era of information warfare"). No sponsors have been identified; the operation was orchestrated from Israel but could have been contracted from any country.

Several LFI candidates were targeted. François Piquemal, an LFI candidate in Toulouse, filed a request in March to annul the municipal election before the administrative court of Toulouse. Sébastien Delogu, an LFI candidate in Marseille, was falsely accused of rape during the campaign. David Guiraud, an LFI candidate in Roubaix, was also targeted by the disinformation campaign. Earlier on May 20, Delogu held a press conference calling on the government to act to prevent the 2027 presidential election from being "mise en péril par des ingérences étrangères" ("jeopardized by foreign interference").

The operation included a fake website called "blog de Sophie" containing insinuations of violence, linked to a network of fake accounts on X, as reported by Le Monde. The announcement follows a May 13 accusation by a French parliament vice president against an Israeli firm of election interference.