Controversial posts by Sandri on social media were discovered by French media, including a tweet evoking the "problem" of removal of "transsexualism" from the list of mental illnesses. A report in Libération published a week before the first round uncovered the alleged Facebook account of the FN candidate, connected to several FN officials and apparent family members and with the same date of birth and location, under the name of "JR Alexandre". Though Sandri denied the account was his when questioned about it, and said that the "journalist and Sophie Montel are in cahoots", posts by the account were removed the following day. Among the activities of the account were a number of likes on anti-abortion pages, support for Francoism, jokes about the Nazis, and several images of Augusto Pinochet, including one used as the account's profile image. In a statement, Montel denounced Sandri's behavior and support for "authoritarian regimes", demanding that Marine Le Pen "firmly condemn" the FN candidate in the constituency.
