French court rejects Sarkozy’s request to merge sentences

A French court has rejected former President Nicolas Sarkozy’s request to combine his two prison sentences into one, Le Monde reports.

Sarkozy has two final convictions: one in the “Bismuth” case and another in the “Bygmalion” case.

In the Bismuth case (December 2024), he was convicted of attempting to obtain favorable treatment from a judge. Part of his sentence was served with an electronic tag, which was removed in May 2025 due to his age.

The Bygmalion case (November 2025) involved illegal campaign financing during his failed 2012 re-election bid. France’s highest court upheld a six-month prison sentence, which he can also serve at home under electronic tag.

Sarkozy had requested that the six-month Bygmalion sentence be considered served, since he had already worn an electronic tag for the Bismuth case. The court denied the request, meaning the Bygmalion sentence must be served separately.

Last year, Sarkozy became the first modern French president to be imprisoned, serving 20 days for illegally financing his 2007 presidential campaign with funds allegedly provided by Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi. He was sentenced to five years in prison but was released after 20 days under supervision.