Defendants were variously charged with 40 additional counts from other allegations, including: Trump and co-defendantsplotted to createpro-Trump slates of fakeelectors;[1] Trumpcalled theGeorgia secretary of state,Brad Raffensperger, asking him to "find 11,780 votes", which would have reversed his loss in the state by a single vote margin;[2] and a small group of Trump allies inCoffee County illegally accessed voting systems attempting to find evidence of election fraud.[3]
The case was set to be heard in theFulton County Superior Court with judgeScott F. McAfee presiding.[5] Former Trump chief of staffMark Meadows, formerDepartment of Justice (DOJ) officialJeffrey Clark, and three other defendants unsuccessfully sought to have their casesremoved to federal court.[6] Four defendants pleaded guilty to some charges, agreed to cooperate with the prosecution, and received sentences including probation, fines, and making public apologies.[7]
After pausing the case,[8] the Georgia Court of Appeals in December 2024 disqualified Willis from prosecuting it.[9] In November 2025, Pete Skandalakis, executive director of the Prosecuting Attorneys' Council of Georgia, took on the role of prosecutor.[10] The date of trial for the remaining 15 defendants, who pleaded not guilty,[11] is not yet set.
Weeks before the2016 presidential election, Trump claimed through a series oftweets that widespread voter fraud was imminent, a sentiment echoed by his legal advisor,Rudy Giuliani.[12] Trump repeated the accusations throughout his presidency and into his2020 reelection campaign; for months, he prepared arguments in the event of his loss, primarily relating tomail-in ballots.[13] As early as August 2020, he enlisted conservative activist and lawyerCleta Mitchell to help overturn the election.[14] Two days beforeElection Day (November 3, 2020), he told reporters that he would be "going in with [his] lawyers" as soon as the election was over.[15]
On Election Day, preliminary surveys at polling places showed Trump in the lead as his supporters were more likely to turn out in person amid theCOVID-19 pandemic, but his lead diminished as mail-in ballots were counted.[16] At the behest of Giuliani, Trump declared in a 2a.m. election night speech in theEast Room that he had won the election and that the counts being reported were fraudulent.[17] As ballots were being counted, campaign data expert Matt Oczkowski bluntly informed Trump that he was going to lose the election. White House CounselPat Cipollone told him that invalidating the results of the election would be a "murder-suicide pact".[18] Under then-attorney generalWilliam Barr, theDepartment of Justice failed to find widespread voter fraud in the election.[19]
On December 3, 2020, a 7-hour hearing of theGeorgia Senate Committee on the Judiciary heard Trump's legal team, including Rudy Giuliani andJohn Eastman, made false claims alleging fraud and misconduct in the state's election process, and that the Georgia legislature had the power to appoint electors for Trump.[22][23] A similar presentation was made to theGeorgia House of Representatives Committee on Governmental Relations.
On December 7, Trump called Georgia House SpeakerDavid Ralston asking him to convene a special session of the state legislature to overturn the Georgia election results.[24]
In late December 2020 and early January 2021,Jeffrey Clark, theAssistant Attorney General for theEnvironment and Natural Resources Division and acting for the DOJCivil Division, drafted a letter to Georgia officials stating the DOJ had "identified significant concerns that may have impacted the outcome of the election in multiple States", urging the Georgia legislature to convene a special session for the "purpose of considering issues pertaining to the appointment of Presidential Electors". Clark presented the draft letter to acting attorney generalJeffrey Rosen and his deputyRichard Donoghue for their signatures; they rejected the proposal and the letter was never sent.[25][26][27][28][29][30][31]
Trump pressured Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to changethe state's election results during an hour-long conference call on January 2, 2021.[32] Trump told Raffensperger, "What I want to do is this. I just want to find, uh, 11,780 votes, which is one more than [the 11,779-vote margin of defeat] we have, because we won the state."[33]
On September 17, Trump wrote to Raffensperger, alleging that 43,000 ballots inDeKalb County had been mishandled and that Raffensperger should "start the process of decertifying the election, or whatever the correct legal remedy is, and announce the true winner." In the 2023 Georgia indictment, the 38th and 39th counts address this act.[34]
As is typical, the 16 potential electors for Trump in Georgia were chosen before the election. After Biden won the election, and days before the scheduled casting of electoral votes, the Republican electors received calls asking them to come to theGeorgia State Capitol to cast "alternate" ballots, ostensibly in caseTexas v. Pennsylvania was ruled in favor of Trump. However, that case was thrown out on December 11, 2020, three days before the electoral vote was to occur, a fact that was withheld from most of the fake electors by Giuliani andKenneth Chesebro. Four members of the Republican electoral slate declined to participate, including former U.S. SenatorJohnny Isakson, and were replaced.[38]
Georgia fake electors convened in a meeting room at the state Capitol at the same time the true electors were meeting in the state Senate chamber.[38] State senatorShawn Still verified fake electors' identities as they entered the room, but the meeting was reportedly open to the public, and video was posted that day.[39] Unlike some other states, the Georgia falsecertificate of ascertainment did not contain language specifying it was to be used only if the Trump campaign prevailed in litigation[38][40] (one state case,Trump v. Raffensperger, was still pending at the time). The falsified documents were then sent to theU.S. Senate and theNational Archives by Giuliani and Chesebro's team.[38]
In the weeks after the election, Trump and his associates publicly disparagedelectronic voting companyDominion Voting Systems. In particular, they claimed that ballots were being altered in a process known as "adjudication", intended to resolve minor errors. Trump asserted that human operators could switch Trump-intended votes to Biden votes.[41]
On January 7, someone who had posed as a fake elector, and who had communicated with theCoffee County elections supervisor about election office access, escorted two Trump operatives into the office, which was captured on surveillance video. Allegedly assisted by employees of the data forensics firm SullivanStrickler, they copied data from voting equipment.[42] In a recorded phone conversation, Atlanta Trump supporter Scott Hall recalled that the team "scanned every freaking ballot", including equipment and that they had "imaged all the hard drives" used on Election Day.[43]The Washington Post reported in September 2023 that during the weeks following the 2020 election Hall had conversations with leaders of theGeorgia Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. Georgia prosecutors said Hall had a 63-minute phone conversation with Jeffrey Clark on January 2, 2021.[44]
The firm SullivanStrickler was subpoenaed by the special grand jury convened in this case in 2022.[46] The company has insisted it is "politically agnostic" and had simply accepted paid work as a third-party contractor for the Trump campaign.[47] During the investigation, the two Trump operatives admitted that Sidney Powell had sent them and that they had accessed a voting machine inside the building. Cathy Latham, one of the fake electors who had escorted them into the building, invoked theFifth Amendment.[42]
Of the 18 co-defendants indicted on August 14, 2023, four—Powell, Hampton, Latham, and Hall—are charged in the Coffee County breach.[48]
After the election, Trump and Giuliani amplified a video that was taken out of context, and used the footage to make baseless claims that Ruby Freeman and her daughterWandrea' ArShaye Moss had committed election fraud. Giuliani accused them of "passing aroundUSB ports as if they were vials of heroin or cocaine" and engaging in "surreptitious illegal activity", citing video footage that, according to Moss, actually showed the women with "a gingermint".[49] The women and their family members were subjected to anti-Black racist smears anddeath threats and were warned by theFederal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) that they would not be safe in their home.
While the lawsuit was ongoing,Moss testified in a June 2022 public hearing before theU.S. House Select Committee on the January6 Attack. She said that, after Giuliani's remarks, she and her family were subjected to a barrage of racist threats, including "Be glad it's 2020 and not 1920", in reference tolynching in the United States.[52] Freeman also testified: "There is nowhere I feel safe. Nowhere. Do you know how it feels to have the president of the United States target you?"[53][54] Moss said that the false accusations against her had impacted her well-being "in a major way—in every way—all because of lies".[55]
Giuliani admitted to the court that his statements about Freeman and Moss had been "defamatoryper se" yet denied causing them "any damages".[56] For failing to turn over subpoenaed evidence in the case, the judgesanctioned him, ordered him to pay over $230,000 of Freeman and Moss's attorney's fees,[57][58][59][60] and entered adefault judgment against him.[61] Following a trial on December 11–15, 2023, the federal jury ordered Giuliani to pay $148 million to Freeman and Moss, including $75 million inpunitive damages.[62][63] Several months later, he lost his bid to dismiss the judgment.[64] Although he filed for bankruptcy,[65] a bankruptcy court judge said in July 2024 that he was no longer entitled to bankruptcy protection given his lack of transparency with the court.[66] Giuliani and his creditors revised their agreement.[67]
AnEuler diagram of categories of charges faced by each defendantThe indictment document
Agrand jury indicted Trump and 18 other defendants on August 14, 2023.[68][69] The indictment mentions 30 unindicted co-conspirators.[b][71]
On November 9, 2025,DOJ Pardon AttorneyEd Martin announced that Trump had pardoned 77 people associated with thefake electors scheme, including his 18 co-defendants in the Georgia case (but not himself). Regardless, Trump does not have the authority to pardon people of charges in Georgia or any other state; as no one on the list was facing federal charges, his pardon was symbolic.[72]
Impersonating a public officer,forgery in the first degree,filing false documents and attempt to commit this, andfalse statements and writings in documents. These charges relate tofake electors purporting to be true electors and creating and distributing two false documents: thecertificate of ascertainment and itscover letter. There is also one charge for a filing in the federal caseTrump v. Kemp. Fake electors and the federal case filers were charged with the underlying crimes, while others were charged with conspiracy to commit them. (The filing false documents charges were dismissed by the judge in September 2024.[1])
Influencing witnesses and attempts to commit this, and conspiracy to commitsolicitation of false statements and writings. These charges relate to an attempt to harass and influence Fulton County election worker Ruby Freeman.
The 19 defendants named in the indictment are listed in the following tables. Conspiracy charge counts are initalics. Attempt charge counts areunderlined. Charges dismissed before trial arestricken through. Latham is listed separately in two of the tables, but her total includes charges from both tables together.[75][76]
Of these defendants, Hall, Powell, Chesebro, and Ellishave pleaded guilty in return for some charges being dropped.
There is overlap with the co-conspirators mentioned in thefederal indictment of Trump issued two weeks earlier. In the federal indictment, Giuliani was listed as co-conspirator No. #1, Eastman was #2, Powell was #3, Clark was #4, and Chesebro was #5. All five of these people, though not charged in the federal prosecution, are charged as co-defendants in the Georgia prosecution.[c]
Of the 16fake Georgia electors, three fake electors are named as defendants in the present indictment, four have been identified with a specific unindicted co-conspirator description, and nine are not conclusively tied to a specific unindicted co-conspirator description.[77][78][81][82]
After the grand jury issued arrest warrants for all 19 defendants per normal procedure, Willis provided the co-defendants an opportunity to voluntarily surrender by noon on August25.[75] All did so,[83] and all but Floyd were immediately released on bond.[84] The defendants surrendered toFulton County Jail on these dates:
August25: Roman, Clark, Still, Hampton, Cheeley,[91] Kutti,[92] and Lee[83]
Trump agreed to a $200,000 bond on August21. His pre-negotiated release conditions include only using attorneys to discuss the case with co-defendants or witnesses and not intimidating co-defendants, unindicted co-conspirators, or witnesses on social media.[93][94] When he surrendered, he used abail bondsman to post his bail.[95]Trump's mug shot was taken,[96] a procedure not required inhis previous indictments.[97] Trump self-reported to authorities a height of 6 ft 3 in (191 cm) and a weight of 215 pounds (98 kg); four months earlier, he told New York authorities he was 6 ft 2 in (188 cm) and 240 pounds (110 kg).[98]
Floyd surrendered and was briefly jailed, not having negotiated a bond agreement; while in jail, he refused a consent bond from Willis's office.[99] In a court hearing on August25, he was denied bond, being deemed a flight risk due to a pending case against him in Maryland for misdemeanor assault on an FBI agent. He told the court that he was unable to afford a lawyer and ineligible for a court-appointed one.[88][100] His bond was set at $100,000 on August29, and he was released the next day.[99][101][102]
Giuliani had his bond set at $150,000; Chesebro, Clark, Eastman, Ellis, Floyd, Meadows, and Powell at $100,000; Kutti, Latham, Lee, and Shafer at $75,000; Cheeley, Roman, and Smith at $50,000; and Hall, Hampton, and Still at $10,000.[d][88][103]
Thearraignment was scheduled for September 6, but all 19 defendants waived their right to appear for their arraignment andpleaded not guilty on the following dates:
Conspiracy to commit intentional interference with the performance of election duties (5 misdemeanor counts)
Five years of probation, $5,000 fine, 200 hours of community service, a public apology to the state of Georgia, and to testify truthfully in future trials.[7]
Sidney Powell
October 19, 2023
Conspiracy to commit intentional interference with the performance of election duties (6 misdemeanor counts)
Six years of probation, $6,000 fine, $2,700 restitution, a public apology to the state of Georgia, and to testify truthfully in future trials.[109][110][111]
Kenneth Chesebro
October 20, 2023
Conspiracy to commit filing false documents (1 felony count)
Five years of probation, $5,000 restitution, 100 hours of community service, a public apology to the state of Georgia, and to testify truthfully in future trials.[112]
Jenna Ellis
October 24, 2023
Aiding and abetting false statements and writings (1 felony count)
Five years of probation, $5,000 restitution, 100 hours of community service, a public apology to the state of Georgia, and to testify truthfully in future trials.[113]
Hall and Powell had each originally been charged with seven felonies related to the Coffee County election equipment breach.[114][115] These felony charges were dropped when they instead pleaded guilty to misdemeanors: Hall to five counts of conspiracy to commit intentional interference with the performance of election duties[108] and Powell to six counts of intentionally interfering with the performance of election duties.[109]
Chesebro had originally been charged with seven felonies related to electoral vote obstruction. He pleaded guilty to only one of these felonies: conspiracy to commit filing false documents.[116] At the hearing where he pleaded guilty, he admitted to conspiring with Trump and Giuliani.[117] He must turn over all evidence in his possession.[116]
All four agreed to testify truthfully regarding defendants; not speak to witnesses, defendants, or media; and submit to the court a letter apologizing to the state and people of Georgia.[118][119][120][121] Hall wrote a few paragraphs, but Powell and Chesebro each wrote only one sentence.[122] Ellis read her apology aloud to the judge.[123]
Powell worked closely with the Trump campaign's legal team during the post-election period, and thus many people anticipate that she has significant information about Trump and Giuliani.[124] She is required to testify about the defendants, yet she may be able to plead the Fifth in response to some questions to avoid self-incrimination. (Although she no longer faces charges in Georgia, she may eventually face federal charges; thefederal indictment for election obstruction describes her as Co-conspirator No.3.)[125] Powell later promoted claims that Willis had "extorted" her into pleading guilty, despite having stated in a court filing that her plea had been made voluntarily, and continued to allege that the election was rigged.[126]
Roman, Cheeley, Hampton, and at least three other defendants rejected similar plea deals. As of October 25, 2023[update], Eastman had not been offered a deal;[127][128] on November 27, he asked for an extension on the deadline for deals.The Guardian reported that prosecutors did not intend to offer a deal to Trump, Giuliani, or Meadows.[129]
The four who pleaded guilty gave recorded interviews. Hampton's attorney, Jonathan Miller III, leaked theseproffer videos to the media,[130][131] and parts of them were published on November 13, 2023:[121]
On September 29, Scott Hall complained he was never reimbursed for his charter flight to Coffee County on January 7, 2021, which he said he did "for shits and giggles" as a "political tourist" and a "water boy". He said the "brain trust" in the Coffee County breach included co-defendant Robert Cheeley, who had asked Hall (a bail bondsman) to help him locate Ruby Freeman.
On October 18, Sidney Powell told investigators that Giuliani, at a December 18, 2020, meeting in the Oval Office including Trump, had discussed accessing voting equipment. She said she still believed there was "machine fraud", though she also admitted she didn't know how the voting machines work, and that she personally would have considered using the military to seize voting machines if Trump had empowered her to do so by appointing her special counsel. She said Meadows told her the next morning: "You know, it's not going to happen." She said she called Trump for six minutes on December 24 "[p]robably to see how he was doing and to say I'm sorry" for losing the legal challenges. She maintained that she had nothing to do with the Coffee County breach.
On October 20, Kenneth Chesebro said he attended an Oval Office meeting on December 16, 2020, regarding Wisconsin, after which he briefed Trump on Arizona and told him the strategy he'd laid out in his November 18 memo. He said he played a role in sending the certificates for the Wisconsin slate offake electors to Congress. He said he began communicating directly with John Eastman in late December and helped edit Eastman's December 23 memo. He said he flew to Capitol Hill on January 2, 2021, in case the Trump campaign invited him to participate in strategy meetings, which it did not.
On October 23, Jenna Ellis told investigators that Trump's deputy chief of staff,Dan Scavino, had told her in December 2020 that Trump would refuse to leave office. Ellis said: "And he said to me, you know, in a kind of excited tone, 'Well, we don't care, and we're not going to leave.'" She said that co-defendant Ray Smith had asked Preston Haliburton, a lawyer involved in Trump's election challenges in Georgia, to get security footage from an Atlanta center where ballots were counted; this footage contained the footage of Moss and Freeman.
The day after the videos were published, Willis renewed her request for a protective order over discovery materials, this time on an emergency basis. Her court filing alleged that the leak was "clearly intended to intimidate witnesses in this case".[132] Most defense attorneys agreed to allow some material to be marked "sensitive". Though Miller had argued that "the public needs to know" about the testimony (he said it helped his client's case), McAfee disagreed that it was appropriate "to start litigating the case before we actually get inside of a courtroom".[130] On November 16, 2023, McAfee issued the protective order.[133]
On the morning of August 24, 2023, before Trump's planned surrender, paperwork was filed to haveSteven Sadow take over fromDrew Findling as Trump's lead counsel.[134][135]
On October 10, Willis argued that Chesebro's five memos should not be protected by attorney-client privilege (as his attorneys had requested)[136] since they did not contain advice about litigation but rather a political strategy for interrupting the transfer of power to Biden.[137]
Floyd tagged Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and former Fulton County poll worker Ruby Freeman on social media and spoke on podcasts, apparently violating his bond agreement. On November 15, Willis asked Judge McAfee to revoke Floyd's bond and send him back to jail.[138] A week later, McAfee decided not to revoke the bond, although he agreed that Floyd had violated it. Instead, he asked the prosecution and defense to agree on how to revise the bond terms to more clearly address how to protect public safety.[139]
A pretrial hearing was held on December 1. Judge McAfee had previously set this as the deadline for any pre-trial motions by the co-defendants (Chesebro and Powell excluded).[140]
In an August 19, 2023 motion, Meadows asked for the case to be dismissed entirely, arguing that "[t]he State's prosecution of Mr.Meadows threatens the important federal interest in providing the President of the United States with close, confidential advice and assistance, firmly entranced [sic] in federal law for nearly 100 years." The motion also argues that Meadows is immune under theFirst Amendment, protecting political speech, and theFourteenth Amendment, prohibiting charges arising from statutes that are "unconstitutionally vague". In addition, since the Georgia indictment charges Meadows for his actions in other states, the motion raises the possibility that any state could therefore prosecute him for his activities in Georgia, the implications of which "are staggering".[141]
In a filing dated September 11, 2023, Trump asked for several charges to be dismissed.[142]
Powell said the review of the voting system had been legal because Coffee County authorized it.[143] On October 5, 2023, McAfee denied Powell's motion to dismiss the charges; he said he had no authority to do that so close to her trial.[144]
On October 11, 2023, Chesebro and Powell's lawyers argued that their clients should not face the RICO charge.[145] Chesebro argued that the pro-Trump electors were indeed public officers under federal law, not merely impersonating public officers, and that he therefore could not have conspired in their impersonation. On October 17, Judge McAfee said he would not dismiss the charges. He said that, although Chesebro may disagree with "the state's legal interpretation", the charges were not "defective".[146][147]
On January 8, 2024, Trump asked for the criminal charges against him to be dismissed on the basis of "presidential immunity". The acts described in the indictment are "at the heart of his official responsibilities as President", his team said in the filing.[148][149]
On January 19, 2024, Floyd appeared for a hearing on his motions to dismiss charges.[150] On May 28, McAfee said that Floyd could continue his efforts to access over 500,000 ballots from Fulton County, which Floyd says he expects will provide evidence of voter fraud. Floyd is claiming that he was genuinely concerned about fraud and thus that the charges against him are invalid.[151]
On March 28, 2024, McAfee was scheduled to hear arguments from Trump's lawyers based on the First Amendment and from Shafer's lawyers based on their assertion that Shafer's conduct was legal.[152] On April 4, McAfee rejected Trump's claim that his statements are protected political speech.[153]
Five defendants asked the federalU.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia tomove their cases to federal court, called "removal". Though all charges would remain under Georgia state law, the consequences of removal would include widening the geographic range of the jury pool and prohibiting cameras in the courtroom.[154] District Court JudgeSteve C. Jones presided over their hearings.[6] Jones denied requests from Meadows and Clark to delay their arrests, so they surrendered to the Georgia court in August 2023 before their removal requests were heard.[155][156][157] All five defendants' motions to remove were denied in September 2023.[6]
On August15, 2023, the day after the indictment, Meadows filed a motion to have his case removed to federal court. He argued that, under theSupremacy Clause of the Constitution, he is immune from state prosecution for anything he did while he served as White House Chief of Staff.[e] Meadows' removal hearing was on August28.[158] On September8, Judge Jones rejected Meadows's request, finding he had not met even the "quite low" threshold for removal. Meadows immediately appealed the ruling to the11th Circuit Court of Appeals and asked Jones for an emergency stay of his Georgia case while his appeal was pending.[159] On September12, Jones rejected Meadows's request to pause his case.[160] On December 15, Meadows had a removal hearing in the appeals court,[161] which on December 18 rejected Meadows' motion.[162] On January 2, 2024, Meadows asked for his removal request to be heard by all 12 judges on the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals,[163] but on February 28, his request for a hearing was denied.[164] On July 26, his attorneys asked the U.S. Supreme Court to hear his removal request. They cited the Supreme Court's decision earlier that month inTrump v. United States which ruled that former presidents have some immunity.[165] On November 12, the Supreme Court refused to move the case.[166]
On August21, 2023, Clark also filed a motion to remove his case to federal court.[f] Clark claimed the same protections from state prosecution as Meadows, as Clark was a Justice Department official at the time. His filing additionally argued that the entire case should be removed to federal court for all defendants.[167][168] Clark's removal hearing was on September18.[169] On September29, Jones rejected the motion.[6] On October9, Clark appealed.[170]
Defendants Shafer,[g] Latham,[h] and Still[i] filed motions in August 2023 to remove the case to federal court.[171] They asserted in these filings that they had convened as alternate electors "at the direction of" Trump via his attorneys, making them federal officials.[172][173] At a hearing on September20, their lawyers argued that theElectoral Count Act of 1887 legally allowed the casting of contingent electoral ballots because a Georgia state court case was still pending past the specified safe harbor date, six days before the electoral vote date.[174][175] On September29, Jones rejected the motion, noting that federal law does not in fact explicitly create the position of contingent elector.[6] On October6, Shafer, Latham, and Still appealed.[170]
Though Trump had formally indicated he might seek removal to federal court,[176] he told the court on September28, 2023, the day before his deadline to seek removal, that he would not do so.[177]
On August 16, 2023, Willis motioned for all defendants to be tried together beginning March 4, 2024. The filing said that the schedule had been chosen so as not to conflict with Trump's already-scheduled court dates in other matters, "but also to protect the State of Georgia's and the public's interest in a prompt resolution of the charges". The requested trial date was nearly two months into the2024 Republican Party presidential primary season, and one day beforeSuper Tuesday. Former U.S. Attorney for GeorgiaMichael J. Moore expressed doubt that the motions and discovery process would be completed so quickly, and that Willis actually believed the case would be ready by March. "I think it's just aPR move", he said.[178]
Trump advised the court on August24 that he opposed a speedy trial,[179][180] and filed a motion to sever on August 31.[181] On November 27, Eastman asked to be tried before Trump.[129] Meadows has said he wants to be tried alone.[182]
In November 2023, Willis proposed starting the trial on August 5, 2024, expecting that it might continue into early 2025; she anticipated that "defendant Trump's other criminal trials" might delay his case but acknowledged that other defendants have a right to a "speedy trial".[183] Specifically, Trump was expected to (and did) appeal hisfederal election-obstruction trial, which at the time was scheduled for March 2024. It was further expected that this appeal of the federal case might delay trials inNew York andFlorida, set for March and May respectively;[184] those cases were delayed, though for other reasons. The New York trial was only briefly delayed and concluded on May 30.
In January 2024, because Shawn Still was serving in theGeorgia General Assembly, he was given extra time for pretrial filings.[185] He filed six motions and had a hearing in May.[186]
On August 23, Chesebro requested a quick trial under Georgia'sSpeedy Trial Act.The judge set his trial for October 23, taking Willis's suggestion. (Willis additionally asked to try all 19 defendants speedily together on this date, but the judge did not immediately address her request.)[187][188] On August 25, Powell also requested a speedy trial.[189]
On September 6, a hearing, the first televised one in the case, was held to address their requests to sever their cases from each other and from the other defendants. (Powell asserted she had "no substantive connection" with any other defendant.)[190][191][192] Judge McAfee denied the Chesebro and Powell motions to sever from each other,[193] and Powell's trial was set for the same day as Chesebro's.[194]
In early September, while discussing whether all defendants could be tried together on the expedited date given to Chesebro and Powell, prosecutors estimated that a 19-defendant proceeding would involve a lengthy jury selection followed by a four-month trial that called 150 witnesses. Judge McAfee responded that he expected such a trial would take longer[195] and later confirmed that the other defendants would not share Chesebro and Powell's trial date.[196][194]
Chesebro and Powell had been scheduled to be tried on October 23,[147] and Judge McAfee had ordered that hundreds of potential jurors should appear beginning on October20.[197] However, both defendants pleaded guilty shortly before juror selection began:[120] on September 29, special prosecutor Nathan Wade told McAfee that the DA's office would extend plea deals to Chesebro and Powell, meaning that their trial would not take place.[198] Powell accepted a deal on October 19,[109] and Chesebro on October 20.[112]
Dismissal of solicitation and false documents charges
On March 13, 2024, Judge McAfee dismissed six charges including three against Trump. The dismissed charges dealt with soliciting public officers, including Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and then-Georgia House Speaker David Ralson, to violate their oaths. The judge said the prosecution did not allege sufficient detail to "give the Defendants enough information to prepare their defenses intelligently". The judge noted that the deficiency was "easily remedied", but since Georgia standards for indictments are stricter than federal standards, the charges could not be clarified during a court proceeding, but would need a new grand jury indictment. The order leaves intact other charges.[2][199][200] TheGeorgia Court of Appeals upheld these dismissals on January 17, 2025.[201]
On September 12, 2024, McAfee dismissed a further three charges regarding filing false documents. Two of the charges were for filing the false electoral documents with the federalU.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, and the other was for a filing in the caseTrump v. Kemp in the same court. McAfee ruled that because the documents were filed in a federal court, they could not be prosecuted under state laws.[1]
"Nathan Wade" redirects here. For the English lawyer (1666–1718), seeNathaniel Wade.
After one of the co-defendants surfaced information about a romantic relationship between district attorneyFani Willis and special prosecutor Nathan Wade, Judge McAfee ruled that one of them must leave the case, so Wade left. The Georgia Court of Appeals later ruled that Willis also must be removed. This issue delayed the case throughout 2024 and into late 2025.
On January 8, 2024,Mike Roman's attorney filed with the court alleging that Fani Willis and Nathan Wade had a romantic relationship.[202][203][204][205] Willis had hired Wade as special prosecutor in the Trump case in November 2021.[206] The filing asserted that Willis went on vacations with Wade and so Willis profited from hiring him, which would be aconflict of interest. The filing requested that the charges against Roman be dropped. It also requested that Willis be disqualified from the case; Willis's office said it would motion to have this request dismissed.[202][203][204] On January 25, Trump joined Roman's effort by filing a similar complaint.[207]
Wade was concurrently involved with divorce proceedings from his wife, Joycelyn, which had also begun in November 2021. On January 8, 2024, Joycelyn's attorneys subpoenaed Willis to testify in the divorce case.[206] On January 19, Joycelyn filed in her divorce case that Nathan had purchased a 2022 trip for himself and Willis to Miami with aRoyal Caribbean cruise and a 2023 trip to San Francisco and aNapa Valley hotel. Clara Bowman (reportedly Nathan's mother) came too.[208] On January 22, a judge in Cobb County Superior Court unsealed the records of the Wades' ongoing divorce.[209] The unsealed records had no reference to an alleged affair between Nathan and Willis.[210] On January 30, Nathan and Joycelyn Wade reached a temporary agreement on some of their issues.[211] Willis and Nathan had been scheduled to testify in the Wades' divorce, but their depositions were no longer needed.[206]
On January 14, Willis made her first public comments about the allegation, saying Wade is qualified for his role and is paid the same rate as the other two special prosecutors on the case.[212] According toThe New York Times, Wade had little prior prosecutorial experience beyond being employed for about a year in the late 1990s by the Cobb County Solicitor's Office, which prosecutesmisdemeanors and traffic citations.[213]
On January 18, with Willis unwilling to recuse herself,[214] Judge McAfee scheduled a hearing on Roman's request to dismiss her from the case. On February 2, the court deadline for Willis to respond to the allegation,[215] she acknowledged she had been in a personal relationship with Wade since 2022 but said she had no financial or personal conflict of interest and that there were no grounds for her dismissal.[216] Willis and Wade were subpoenaed to testify at the February 15 hearing.[217]
Seventeen ethics experts, former prosecutors and defense attorneys filed a"friend of the court" brief with Judge McAfee on February 5. They found that, even if all of Roman's allegations were true, they would "not even come close" to requiring Willis be removed from the case, or that the charges be dropped.[218]
On February 12, McAfee said he would consider removing Willis from the case if he finds a financial conflict of interest. McAfee clarified that not all of Roman's complaints are relevant and that, at a February 15 hearing, he would consider details of the Willis–Wade relationship only in the context of whether the relationship led to financial benefit.[219]
At the first day of the hearing, Roman's lawyers questioned whether prosecutors had lied in their affidavit about when they began their romantic relationship.[220] On February 27, Wade's former law partner Terrence Bradley testified that he did not know when Wade and Willis's relationship began. Although Bradley had previously informed the defense team[221] that the relationship began in "late 2019," he testified that "I speculated on some things."[222] On March 4, Shafer's attorneys asked to subpoena Cindi Lee Yeager, a co-chief deputy district attorney for Cobb County, should McAfee reopen hearings.[223]
On March15, Judge Scott McAfee ruled that either Willis (along with her office) or Wade must leave the case, because their relationship brought about a "significant appearance of impropriety".[224][225] Willis committed a "tremendous lapse in judgment" and her "testimony during the evidentiary hearing" was "unprofessional", but "simply making bad choices – even repeatedly" does not establish an actual conflict of interest under Georgia law, stated McAfee.[224][226] As there was not enough evidence that Willis "acquired a personal stake in the prosecution, or that her financial arrangements had any impact on the case", an actual conflict of interest was not proven, ruled McAfee.[227] Later that day, Wade resigned from the case.[228][200]
A year later, on March 17, 2025, Fulton County Superior Court Judge Rachel Krause ruled that Willis’ office should have turned over documents that Roman's defense attorney Ashleigh Merchant had requested under Georgia’s Open Records Act. Krause said that Willis's refusals to do so "were intentional, not done in good faith, and were substantially groundless and vexatious", that her office must turn over any remaining documents within 30 days, and that she must pay Merchant's attorney fees of over $54,000.[231]
After Wade resigned, satisfying McAfee's March15 ruling, Trump continued to seek Fani Willis's removal from the case as well. On March20, McAfee allowed Trump to turn to theGeorgia Court of Appeals,[232] though McAfee clarified that Trump's appeal of this matter would not delay "the many other unrelated pending pretrial motions" that McAfee was addressing.[233] On March29, Trump submitted the appeal.[234] On April8, Willis asked the court to reject it.[235]
On May8, the Georgia Court of Appeals said it would hear the appeal to dismiss Willis,[236] and on June 5, it paused the election racketeering case so it could first decide about Willis.[8] While such cases usually rely on legal briefs, Trump's team asked the court to hear oral arguments.[237] Oral arguments were tentatively set for October4 before judgesE. Trenton Brown III, Benjamin A. Land, andTodd Markle,[238] then delayed to December 5,[239] then canceled.[240]
On December 19, the Georgia Court of Appeals disqualified Willis in a 2–1 decision. The decision noted that Willis was a public prosecutor with a special duty to make decisions in the public’s interest, unlike a private advocate, and held that "the remedy crafted by the trial court... did nothing to address the appearance of impropriety that existed at times when DA Willis was exercising her broad pretrial discretion about who to prosecute and what charges to bring." The dissenting judge wrote that this determination was properly under the discretion of the trial court and not the appeals court, and that the majority had ruled, "with the citation of no supporting authority and apparently for the first time in the history of our state, that the mere existence of anappearance of impropriety, in and of itself, is sufficient to reverse the trial court’s refusal to disqualify the district attorney and her entire office [emphasis in original]."[9]
On January 9, 2025, Willis' office appealed to theSupreme Court of Georgia.[241] On September 16, the court declined to hear the appeal by a 4–3 vote.[242][243]
Due to a 2025 Georgia law, defendants in dismissed cases in which the prosecutor has been disqualified for misconduct may seek reimbursement of attorney fees, with county where the case was prosecuted paying them with taxpayer funds.[244] After Willis failed to overturn her disqualification, this new law can be applied to Trump and his co-defendants. Trump had by early 2025 paid about $2.7 million to his lead attorneys in this case, and the Georgia Republican Party had paid about $2 million for other defendants, according to theAtlanta Journal-Constitution.[245] As Senate Bill 244, the law had passed the Georgia Senate on March 6 and won final approval on April 4,[246] and was signed by Georgia Governor Brian Kemp on May 14, 2025.[244]
In August 2024, State SenatorBill Cowsert, a Republican who chaired theGeorgia State Senate Special Committee on Investigations, subpoenaed Willis for testimony and documents. Willis challenged the validity of the subpoena. The Supreme Court of Georgia will hear the challenge in October 2025.[247]
For the case to continue, the Georgia Court of Appeals required that the executive director of theProsecuting Attorneys' Council of Georgia select a substitute prosecutor. It could be someone publicly or privately employed, or it could be someone employed by the Prosecuting Attorneys' Council itself.[248][249][250]
After the Supreme Court of Georgia declined in September 2025 to hear Willis's appeal, Judge McAfee said the council must choose a new prosecutor soon or he would dismiss the case.[243][251][252] He extended the deadline to November 14 after Pete Skandalakis, the council's executive director, said he could not predict how long it might take.[242] Meanwhile, Willis's office handed over to Skandalakis 101 boxes of documents and the entire case file on a hard drive.[253] On the morning of the deadline, Skandalakis announced that, having been unable to find a willing prosecutor, he would take on the role himself.[10]
Hall, Powell, Chesebro, and Ellis will not be tried because they have pleaded guilty. The trial for the 15 remaining defendants remained unscheduled while the Georgia Court of Appeals removed Fani Willis from the case and then while the Supreme Court of Georgia chose not to hear her appeal.[254] Given thatTrump is a sitting president again, the prosecution may be complex, although there is no rule against bringing a sitting president to trial.[255][256]
Unlike the proceedings in Trump's other three indictments where photography was not permitted, the Georgia proceedings will belivestreamed onYouTube and journalists will be allowed to use their phones in the courtroom.[257][258] However, the juries will remain anonymous at least until the end of trial[259] and will have security.[257]
During Chesebro and Powell's trial preparation in 2023, prosecutors had filed to seek testimony fromBoris Epshteyn,Lin Wood, several GOP officials in other states,[260] conspiracy theoristAlex Jones (whose attorney said he wouldplead the Fifth),[261] and former RNC ChairwomanRonna McDaniel.[262]The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported in December 2023 that the prosecution's nearly 200-person witness list included former vice presidentMike Pence, former attorney generalBill Barr, former acting attorney generalJeffrey Rosen and his deputyRichard Donoghue, congressmanScott Perry and former Trump advisorSteve Bannon.[263]
On July 1, 2024, theU.S. Supreme Court ruled in a separate case that, for acts considered "official", former presidents are immune from criminal prosecution. Further, evidence of these official acts cannot be used to prosecute them for other acts.[264][265][266] This will affect the Georgia prosecution in various ways. For example, Trump's interviews with Justice Department attorneys (including co-defendant Jeffrey Clark) can no longer be introduced as evidence in the Georgia trial,[267] complicating the prosecution's case against both Trump and Clark.[268]
U.S. House Republicans opened an investigation into Willis hours before Trump surrendered for arrest. CongressmanJim Jordan wrote her asking if she had coordinated with theSmith special counsel investigation or used federal money in her investigation. Jordan demanded Willis provide documents and communications by September 7.[269][270] Willis wrote to Jordan on September 7 that his letter contained "inaccurate information and misleading statements", alleging he was seeking to "obstruct a Georgia criminal proceeding and to advance outrageous misrepresentations" without constitutional authority, for his personal political gain.[271]
Some Georgia Republican legislators, notably state senatorColton Moore, proposed convening a special legislative session to consider impeaching Willis. Such a move would require consent of Democrats, and Republican governorBrian Kemp said he opposed it to prevent "political theater that only inflames the emotions of the moment" and "some grifter scam" to raise campaign contributions for Moore.[272]
In May 2023, Georgia Republicans enacted a law that created a commission empowered to discipline or remove state prosecutors who were alleged to have violated their duties. As he signed the bill creating the commission, Governor Kemp said it would curb "far-left prosecutors" who are "making our communities less safe". Days after the Willis indictments, state senator Chad Dixon announced he would file a complaint against Willis when the commission commenced in October, alleging she had weaponized the justice system against political opponents with an "unabashed goal to become some sort of leftist celebrity".[273][274] Hours after the commission became effective on October 1, eight Republican Georgia senators filed a complaint seeking to have Willis sanctioned for her alleged "improperly cherry-picked cases to further her personal political agenda".[275]
On September 14, 2023, one of the defendants, Jenna Ellis, said she would not support Trump for office again because he does not accept responsibility for his wrongdoings.[276]
On September 15, 2023, a three-judge panel ruled that the charges against Shawn Still would not automatically deprive him of his state senate seat.[277] He held his seat in the2024 election.[278]
On June 26, 2025, New York's appellate court ruled that Chesebro should be disbarred for attempting to overturn Trump's 2020 election loss in Georgia. "That basis alone" was sufficient to question his fitness to practice law, the court wrote.[279]
^Stanley-Becker, Isaac; Gardner, Amy; Dawsey, Josh (October 22, 2023)."Sidney Powell was Trump's biggest 'fighter.' Now she's a big threat".Washington Post.ISSN0190-8286.Archived from the original on October 22, 2023. RetrievedOctober 22, 2023.As part of her plea, she [Powell] was required to write a letter of apology to the people of Georgia — a terse handwritten note on a legal pad that she submitted to prosecutors Thursday that indicated she was sorry for her actions in Coffee County, according to a person familiar with the message who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the matter's sensitivity.
^Hallerman, Tamar; Wickert, David (October 24, 2023)."Disavowing Trump, a tearful Jenna Ellis pleads guilty in Fulton election probe".The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.ISSN1539-7459.Archived from the original on January 12, 2024. RetrievedDecember 14, 2023.'I look back on this whole experience with deep remorse,' she said. ... Ellis, 38, also took the unusual step of addressing Fulton Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee, who is presiding over the case, from behind the defense table. With tears streaming down her face, Ellis said, 'if I knew then what I know now, I would have declined to represent Donald Trump in these post-election challenges.'
^Holmes, Kristen; Murray, Sara (August 24, 2023)."Trump replaces top Georgia lawyer ahead of surrender".CNN Politics.Archived from the original on August 24, 2023. RetrievedAugust 24, 2023.Drew Findling, the lawyer who has led Trump's defense in Georgia, is being replaced by Steven Sadow. ... Sadow filed paperwork Thursday morning to formally represent the former president in the case. ... Trump's other Georgia attorney, Jennifer Little, is expected to stay on the legal team and work with Sadow.
^abGardner, Amy; Bailey, Holly (January 18, 2024)."Judge in Trump Georgia case orders hearing on Fani Willis misconduct claims".Washington Post.ISSN0190-8286.Archived from the original on January 18, 2024. RetrievedJanuary 18, 2024....a scheduled Jan. 31 hearing in Cobb County Superior Court over a motion to unseal records in Wade's divorce case. Merchant has said she believes records in that case will substantiate her allegations of wrongdoing by Willis and Wade.
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