Former US President Trump has pleaded not guilty to a electoral conspiracy trial in Georgia. He will not appear in court for the indictment.
Former US President Donald Trump, indicted in the US state of Georgia, has pleaded “not guilty” in the case of alleged electoral conspiracy. Trump refrained from formally reading the allegations and does not have to appear for an indictment in Atlanta that Judge Scott McAfee had scheduled for the coming week.
Rudy Giuliani among co-defendants
Trump was indicted last week in Georgia’s capital Atlanta for his attempts to overturn the outcome of the 2020 presidential election in Georgia and thus stay in power. The charge against the 77-year-old includes 13 points and is based, among other things, on a law against organized crime.
Trump is said to have conspired with 18 other defendants to have himself declared the winner of the Georgia election despite his defeat by Democrat Joe Biden. Among the co-defendants are Trump’s former attorney Rudy Giuliani and Trump’s former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows. Several other defendants have also already waived a formal reading of the indictment and therefore do not have to travel to Atlanta.
Four charges against Trump
Trump has been indicted four times this year, including twice for his post-election activities in 2020. There are federal and state charges.
In the first three charges against Trump, the authorities had refrained from taking police photos. However, on charges of interfering with the election in Georgia, Trump showed up for identification at an Atlanta jail last week. The local sheriff’s office then released the ex-president’s mugshot and the personal information he provided. It is the first mugshot of a former US President.
Trump still popular
Trump, the leading contender for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, has criticized the trials against him as part of a politically motivated attempt to prevent his return to the White House.
Despite the charges against him, Trump continues to enjoy great popularity among the right-wing base: The right-wing populist leads polls for the 2024 Republican presidential primary by more than 40 points over his pursuers.