Marine Le Pen announced the plan to "rebrand" during an interview on the "Le Grand Rendez-vous" program on the radio channel Europe 1. She said that this will help gain more votes during the next presidential election in 2022.
Le Pen plans to propose a new name to members of the party for a vote at the party's congress next month, but there's still a possibility it might be rejected and the current title will be kept.
Despite the proposed change, the party is "absolutely" not changing its line on immigration, borders and security, Le Pen insisted. "We are not renouncing anything, we are starting a new chapter in our history," she added.
READ MORE: Leader of French Right-Wing FN Party Le Pen Urges to 'Overthrow EU From Within'
Le Pen explained that she plans to transform the National Front from a political opposition movement against the government to one that could win enough votes in the next election to actually govern the country.
"Je suis favorable au changement de nom du @FN_officiel, qui ouvre un nouveau chapitre de son histoire, qui verra le mouvement d'opposition que nous sommes devenir un mouvement de gouvernement." #LeGrandRDV
— Marine Le Pen (@MLP_officiel) 11 февраля 2018 г.
Since Le Pen’s defeat, her party has been crippled by infighting, resulting in Florian Philippot, the party’s vice president, leaving.
A family feud is not helping the party's image either. Le Pen is locked in a bitter feud with her father, the party’s founder, Jean-Marie Le Pen, who was kicked out of the party in 2015 following anti-Semitic remarks about the Holocaust. He continues to criticize her from the sidelines.
