Marine Le Pen succeeded in making France's far right palatable by embracing the LGBT community and posting pictures of herself with her cat on social media. © AP
PARIS (AP) -- For years, Marine Le Pen stood at the gates of power, poised, relentless and rising. She stripped the French far right of its old symbols, sanded down its roughest edges and built in its place a sleek, disciplined machine with the single goal of winning the country's presidency.
In 2022, she came closer than anyone thought possible, winning more than 40% of the vote in the runoff against Emmanuel Macron. The Elysee Palace seemed within reach.