The Penelope Fillon Affair

French presidential candidate, François Fillon, faces a preliminary investigation into possible misuse of public funds. The newspaper Le Canard Enchaîné broke a story claiming that while Fillon was Prime Minister, he hired his wife, Penelope Fillon, as a "parliamentary aide" where she worked for over eight years collecting paychecks totaling to about €800,000 but the paper could not find a trace of her work, leading many to believe it was a fake job. 

François Fillon was selected as the candidate for Les Républicains for this year's presidential elections in France. Before this week, he was expected to be the favorite in the general election this spring against independent candidate Emmanuel Macron and Front National candidate Marine Le Pen. 

Even if he isn't charged, the scandal has hurt Fillon's popularity significantly. Since the story broke, his presidential bid has been placed in jeopardy with many expecting a "Plan B" from leaders of the party who might force him to withdraw from the race entirely. Fillon has blamed the left-wing government and raged about "an institutional coup d'état" against him. In an interview, Fillion said his wife’s work was “real, legal, and transparent” and he would “sue newspapers who say my wife had a fake job."

76% of French citizens not convinced by #Fillon defense. Hard to see way out of #PenelopeGate for him after new revelations. #FillonGate pic.twitter.com/ohpTwdC8uO

— Maximilian Hofmann (@maxhofmann) February 1, 2017

As it stands, the latest polls have Marine Le Pen at 27% popularity, Emmanuel Macron at 23%, and François Fillon trailing at 20%. The accusations contrast Fillon's campaign image as scandal-free and "immune to the sleaze allegations of French politics" as the Guardian puts it. Fillon promised he would present hard evidence to investigators that his wife was legally employed and that her kind of work was not something “that you necessarily do in an office." 

It is being rumored that should he resign, the "Plan B" could involve Alain Juppé taking the place of Fillon, as he came in second place during the Républicain primaries. "I do not know if we are working [on a plan] as such," Républicain MP Philippe Gosselin told LCI Radio, "but it is true that questions arise from a number of colleagues and also from our fellow citizens."

There is currently a petition on Change.org demanding that Penelope Fillon reimburse the 800,000 Euros to the French people.