France Ex-President Nicolas Sarkozy Sentenced To One Year In Prison

Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy  has been sentenced to one year in prison for illegal campaign funding. The Paris court ruled that the sentence would take the form of electronically monitored house arrest. The allegations go back to the 2012 presidential election campaign. "As a candidate, he failed to control costs," said the presiding judge in Paris. 

Sarkozy stayed away from the verdict. According to his lawyer Thierry Herzog, he wants to appeal and contest the decision. The public prosecutor has asked for a year in prison, including six months on probation. Sarkozy's lawyers pleaded for acquittal for the Conservative who ruled the Élysée Palace from 2007 to 2012. 13 other defendants were found guilty with him.

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Prosecutors argued that 66-year-old Sarkozy knew weeks before the 2012 election that campaign funding was approaching the cap. He ignored two warnings from his financial advisors.

In France, spending on the election campaign is capped in order to create more equality of opportunity between candidates. The upper limit allowed at that time was 22.5 million euros.