Federal prosecution of Donald Trump, 2023-2024 (2020 election certification case)

Donald Trump indictments, 2023-2025
New York prosecution
Defendant: Donald Trump (R) Prosecutor: Alvin Bragg (D) Judge: Juan Merchan Court: New York Supreme Court
Important datesSentencing: January 10, 2025 Verdict: May 30, 2024 Trial: April 15, 2024 Arraignment: April 4, 2023 Indictment: March 30, 2023
Federal prosecution (classified documents case)
Defendant: Donald Trump (R) Prosecutor: Jack Smith Judge: Aileen Cannon Court: Southern District of Florida
Important datesAppeal dismissed: Nov. 26, 2024 Case dismissed: July 15, 2024 Arraignment: June 13, 2023 Indictment: June 8, 2023
Federal prosecution (2020 election certification case)
Defendant: Donald Trump (R) Prosecutor: Jack Smith Judge: Tanya S. Chutkan Court: United States District Court for the District of Columbia
Important datesCase dismissed: November 25, 2024 Arraignment: August 3, 2023 Indictment: August 1, 2023
Georgia prosecution
Defendant: Donald Trump (R) Prosecutor: N/A (formerly Fani Willis (D)) Judge: Scott McAfee Court: Fulton County Superior Court
Important datesTrial: TBD Arraignment: Waived Indictment: August 14, 2023
See also Noteworthy criminal misconduct in American politics (2023-2024) • Impeachment of Donald Trump, 2021 • Impeachment of Donald Trump, 2019-2020

A federal grand jury charged former President Donald Trump (R) with four criminal counts related to the certification of the 2020 presidential election in August 2023. Trump pleaded not guilty. Judge Tanya S. Chutkan oversaw the proceedings.

Special counsel Jack Smith moved to dismiss the case without prejudice on November 25, 2024. The U.S. Constitution prohibits the criminal prosecution of a sitting president, and Donald Trump (R) won the 2024 presidential election on November 5. In his filing, Smith wrote "That prohibition is categorical and does not turn on the gravity of the crimes charged, the strength of the Government’s proof, or the merits of the prosecution, which the Government stands fully behind."

In July 2024, the Supreme Court ruled on Trump's claim of presidential immunity in the case, saying in a 6-3 decision written by Chief Justice John Roberts that presidents have absolute immunity for core constitutional powers and no immunity for unofficial actions. The case was remanded to a lower court to determine which charges in the indictment could proceed. Smith released a superseding indictment on August 27, 2024, which maintained the same charges against Trump with an adjusted presentation to adhere to the Supreme Court's ruling.

The original indictment was filed in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. It included the following charges alleged against Trump:

• conspiracy to defraud the United States "by using dishonesty, fraud and deceit to obstruct the nation’s process of collecting, counting, and certifying the results of the presidential election;"
• conspiracy to obstruct the certification of the electoral vote on January 6, 2021;
• obstruction of the certification of the electoral vote on January 6, 2021; and
• conspiracy "to injure, oppress, threaten, and intimidate one or more persons in the free exercise and enjoyment of" the right to vote and have one's vote counted.

In November 2022, U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland appointed Smith to investigate whether any individual or entity "unlawfully interfered with the transfer of power following the 2020 presidential election or the certification of the Electoral College vote held on or about January 6, 2021." Before this appointment, Smith served as a chief prosecutor for the special court in The Hague, Netherlands, where he investigated war crimes in Kosovo.

This page contains information about Trump's federal prosecution regarding the certification of the 2020 presidential election. For information about his prosecution in the state of New York for falsifying business records, click here, and for more information about his federal prosecution regarding the handling of classified documents click here. For more information about Trump's prosecution in the state of Georgia, click here.

Timeline

The section below provides a timeline of events related to the federal indictment of Trump on charges related to the certification of the 2020 presidential election.

• November 25, 2024: Special counsel Jack Smith moved to dismiss the case. Chutkan formally dismissed the case the same day.
• August 27, 2024: Special counsel Jack Smith released a superseding indictment in the case. The superseding indictment charged Trump with the same crimes, but adjusted the presentation of the charges to adhere to the Supreme Court's ruling.
• July 1, 2024: The Supreme Court ruled on Trump's presidential immunity claim. In a 6-3 opinion written by Chief Justice John Roberts, the court ruled that a former president has absolute immunity for core constitutional powers and the presumption of immunity for official acts. The court ruled there is no immunity for unofficial acts. The court remanded the case to a lower court to determine which charges in the indictment could proceed. Click here to read more about the case.
• April 25, 2024: The Supreme Court heard oral arguments on Trump's presidential immunity claim.
• February 28, 2024: The Supreme Court of the United States agreed to hear the case regarding Trump's immunity claim.
• February 12, 2024: Trump's legal team asked the Supreme Court of the United States to stay the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit's ruling against Trump's presidential immunity motion to dismiss. Smith filed a response to the appeal on February 15.
• February 6, 2024: A three-judge panel on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled unanimously against Trump's presidential immunity motion to dismiss.
• February 2, 2024: The original trial date of March 4, 2024, was removed from the court's calendar, meaning the trial would likely be rescheduled pending the resolution of the appeals process for the presidential immunity motion to dismiss.
• December 22, 2023: The Supreme Court of the United States rejected Jack Smith's request asking the court to immediately review the Trump legal team's motion to dismiss the case on the grounds of presidential immunity.
• December 13, 2023: Chutkan issued a stay in the case pending the resolution of the appeal process for the Trump legal team's motion to dismiss the case on the grounds of presidential immunity.
• December 11, 2023: Jack Smith submitted a request to the Supreme Court of the United States asking the court to immediately review the Trump legal team's motion to dismiss the case on the grounds of presidential immunity. The Supreme Court said it would consider Smith's request.
• December 8, 2023: A three-judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit unanimously ruled to uphold most of Chutkan's order prohibiting parties in the case from making public statements about individuals associated with the case. The panel lifted the restrictions on statements about Jack Smith and some statements about potential witnesses. It also said Trump can't make statements about staff members and personnel's or potential witness' participation in the trial, but could speak about them broadly.
• December 1, 2023: Chutkan rejected the Trump legal team's motion seeking to dismiss the case on the grounds of presidential immunity.
• October 29, 2023: Chutkan reinstated the order prohibiting parties in the case from making public statements about Jack Smith and his staff, the defense counsel and his staff, court staff and personnel, or any reasonably foreseeable witness or the substance of their testimony.
• October 20, 2023: Chutkan stayed the order prohibiting parties in the case from making public statements about Jack Smith and his staff, the defense counsel and his staff, court staff and personnel, or any reasonably foreseeable witness or the substance of their testimony.
• October 17, 2023: Chutkan issued an order prohibiting parties in the case from making public statements about Jack Smith and his staff, the defense counsel and his staff, court staff and personnel, or any reasonably foreseeable witness or the substance of their testimony.
• October 5, 2023: Trump's counsel filed a motion seeking to dismiss the case on the grounds of presidential immunity.
• August 28, 2023: Chutkan set a date of March 4, 2024, for Trump's federal 2020 election certification trial.
• August 11, 2023: Chutkan modified a protective order limiting the extent to which parties to the case can speak publicly about evidence. She limited the order to sensitive materials, rather than all materials given to the defense. Trump's lawyers requested the modification in an August 7 filing.
• August 3, 2023: Trump pleaded not guilty at his arraignment.
• August 1, 2023: The indictment was unsealed. The document contained four criminal counts.
• December 22, 2022: The House Select Committee investigating the January 6, 2021, breach of the U.S. Capitol made criminal referrals to the U.S. Department of Justice against Donald Trump, Mark Meadows, Rudy Giuliani, John Eastman, Jeffrey Clark, and Kenneth Chesebro. The charges referred were inciting insurrection, conspiracy to defraud the United States, obstruction of an act of Congress, and one charge not specified at the time of the committee hearing.
• November 18, 2022: Garland appointed Smith as special counsel.
• June 24, 2021: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) announced the formation of a select committee to investigate the root causes of the breach of the U.S. Capitol and general security issues related to the incident. For more detailed coverage of the committee's activities, click here.
• January 7, 2021: Congress reconvened and certified the Electoral College results.
• January 6, 2021: Congress convened to certify the Electoral College results. Both chambers recessed after pro-Trump demonstrators entered the U.S. Capitol. For a more detailed timeline of events on January 6, 2021, click here.
• December 14, 2020: Election results were finalized. Joe Biden (D) won the presidential election with 306 electoral college votes to Trump's 232.
• November 7, 2020: Media outlets identified Biden as the projected winner of the 2020 presidential election.

Legal team

As of April 5, 2024, Trump's legal team in this case included Todd Blanche and John Lauro.

Statements in response to the indictment

The section below provides full statements in response to the indictment from Trump, federal officials, and congressional leadership.

Former President Donald Trump (R)

Trump released a statement in response to the charges. The statement is provided below.

“

This is nothing more than the latest corrupt chapter in the continued pathetic attempt by the Biden Crime Family and their weaponized Department of Justice to interfere with the 2024 Presidential Election, in which President Trump is the undisputed frontrunner, and leading by substantial margins. But why did they wait two and a half years to bring these fake charges, right in the middle of President Trump's winning campaign for 2024? Why was it announced the day after the big Crooked Joe Biden scandal broke out from the Halls of Congress? The answer is, election interference! The lawlessness of these persecutions of President Trump and his supporters is reminiscent of Nazi Germany in the 1930s, the former Soviet Union, and other authoritarian, dictatorial regimes. President Trump has always followed the law and the Constitution, with advice from many highly accomplished attorneys. These un-American witch hunts will fall and President Trump will be re-elected to the White House so he can save our Country from the abuse, incompetence, and corruption that is running through the veins of our Country at levels never seen before. Three years ago we had strong borders, energy independence, no inflation, and a great economy. Today, we are a nation in decline. President Trump will not be deterred by disgraceful and unprecedented political targeting!

”

Special counsel Jack Smith

Smith gave the following statement on August 1, 2023, following the unsealing of the indictment:

“

Good evening. Today an indictment was unsealed charging Donald J. Trump with conspiring to defraud the United States, conspiring to disenfranchise voters, and conspiring and attempting to obstruct official proceedings. The indictment was issued by a grand jury of citizens here in the District of Columbia that sets forth the crimes charged in detail. I encourage everyone to read it in full. The attack on our nation's capital and January 6, 2021 was an unprecedented assault on the seat of American democracy. It is described in the indictment as fueled by lies, lies by the defendant targeted at obstructing a bedrock function of the U.S. government, the nation's process of collecting, counting and certifying the results of the presidential election. The men and women of law enforcement who defended the U.S. Capitol on January 6 are heroes. They are patriots and they are the very best of us. They did not just defend a building with people sheltering in it, they put their lives on the line to defend who we are as a country and as a people. They defended the very institutions and principles that define the United States. Since the attack on our Capitol, the Department of Justice has remained committed to ensuring accountability for those criminally responsible for what happened that day. This case is brought consistent with that amendment, and our investigation continues. In this case, our office will seek an expedient trial so that our evidence can be tested in court and judged by a jury of citizens. In the meantime, I must emphasize that the indictment is only an allegation and that the defendant must be presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. I would like to thank the members of the Federal Bureau of Investigation who are working on this investigation with my office, as well as the many career prosecutors and law enforcement agents from around the country who have worked on previous January 6 investigations. These women and men are public servants of the very highest order, and it is a privilege to work alongside them. Thank you.

”

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.)

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) released a joint statement in response to the indictment. The text of the statement is provided below:

“

The insurrection on January 6, 2021 was one of the saddest and most infamous days in American history, personally orchestrated by Donald Trump and fueled by his insidious Big Lie in an attempt to undermine the 2020 election. In a deadly effort to overturn the will of the American people and block the peaceful transition of power, our nation's Capitol - the very symbol and home of American patriotism and democracy - fell under attack to thousands of vicious and violent rioters. The third indictment of Mr. Trump illustrates in shocking detail that the violence of that day was the culmination of a months long criminal plot led by the former president to defy democracy and overturn the will of the American people. This indictment is the most serious and most consequential thus far and will stand as a stark reminder to generations of Americans that no one, including a president of the United States, is above the law. The legal process must continue to move forward without any outside interference.

”

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.)

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) released the following statement in response to the indictment:

“

We’ve recently learned: Hunter received money from China (contradicting President Biden’s claim) President Biden spoke with Hunter’s business associates over 20 times (contradicting what Biden previously claimed) Biden’s DOJ tried to secretly give Hunter broad immunity and admitted the sweetheart deal was unprecedented And just yesterday a new poll showed President Trump is without a doubt Biden’s leading political opponent. Everyone in America could see what was going to come next: DOJ’s attempt to distract from the news and attack the frontrunner for the Republican nomination, President Trump. House Republicans will continue to uncover the truth about Biden Inc. and the two-tiered system of justice.

”

Media commentary

The section below provides media commentary in response to the indictment.

“	It is hard to overstate just how important and how damning this third indictment is. It gets straight to the point. Trump is charged with just four counts—conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, obstruction of an official proceeding, and witness tampering—but at the heart of the indictment are descriptions of extraordinary, unlawful, and authoritarian acts. The conspiracy Trump is charged with is one that was aimed at undermining the bedrock of American democracy: 'to overturn the legitimate result of the 2020 election.'	”
—Alex Shepard, The New Republic (August 1, 2023)

“	Now, through a special counsel it appointed for this precise purpose, the Biden Justice Department is attempting to use the criminal process as a do-over for a failed impeachment. In effect, Jack Smith is endeavoring to criminalize protected political speech and flimsy legal theories — when the Supreme Court has repeatedly admonished prosecutors to refrain from creative theories to stretch penal laws to reach misconduct that Congress has not made illegal. [...] To criminalize the conduct for which [Jack Smith] seeks to convict Trump, Congress would have to write sweeping laws that could easily be wielded by one party against another to punish objectionable political conduct. That would undermine both electoral politics and the rule of law. This indictment shouldn’t stand.	”
—Editorial Board, National Review (August 1, 2023)

“	[This case] will allow prosecutors to put on a compelling case that will hold Mr. Trump fully accountable for the multipronged effort to overturn the election. At the same time, it avoids legal and political pitfalls that could have delayed or derailed the prosecution. [...] There will be those who say any case that does not charge Mr. Trump with insurrection or sedition is a whitewash that fails to hold him properly accountable. I think those critics are wrong. These charges will allow prosecutors to present the sweeping, multistate scheme to overturn the election, with all its different aspects, to the jury and the public. They are serious felony charges that carry hefty penalties.	”
—Randall D. Eliason, The New York Times (August 2, 2023)

“	Donald Trump’s many failed legal challenges of 2020’s election outcomes and the many Americans he deceived created the conditions that erupted in violence. He lied repeatedly, brazenly, and likely knowingly. He suborned others to lie. He sought to obstruct the proper workings of government. And his behavior begat one of the darkest days in this country’s history. All of which is to say: These charges deserve the hearing they are about to receive.	”
—Noah Rothman, National Review (August 2, 2023)

“	The notion that Biden or Garland was somehow determined to prosecute Trump relies on a serious distortion of the public record. Indeed, that record vexed some observers, including me, who repeatedly expressed frustration over how the two men seemed to be going out of their way for most of the first two years of the administration to avoid investigating and potentially prosecuting Trump. What changed? The best explanation at the moment — the one that most neatly fits the available facts and a robust body of credible reporting — is that the work of the Jan. 6 select committee spurred the Justice Department to action.	”
—Ankush Khardori, Politico (August 1, 2023)

“	Yet this indictment, perhaps even more than the others, will by dint of looking back at 2020 roil the 2024 campaign. Democrats want Mr. Trump to be the Republican nominee, and Mr. Smith (whether he intends it or not) is making that outcome more likely. We will have an election campaign that rotates between courtrooms and rallies. The carnival will make it difficult for other Republicans to be heard. A debate between Joe Biden and Mr. Trump, if they are the nominees, will be over one man’s age and infirmity and another’s attempt to stay out of jail.	”
—Editorial Board, Wall Street Journal (August 1, 2023)

Text of the indictment

Superseding indictment (August 27, 2024)

The section below provides the text of the superseding indictment released on August 27, 2024.

Original indictment (August 1, 2023)

The section below provides the text of the indictment released on August 1, 2023.

Text of the Supreme Court's immunity ruling

The section below provides the text of the Supreme Court's ruling on Trump's claim of presidential immunity issued on July 1, 2024.

What a grand jury does

A grand jury is defined as "a group of people who look at the evidence against someone who has been accused of a crime in order to decide if there should be a trial."

Prosecutors present evidence to a grand jury, which decides whether there is probable cause to believe that a crime has been committed. Grand juries are made up of 16 to 23 people, who serve for a period of one month up to one year.

Federal grand jury sessions are held in private, usually not in the presence of the alleged criminal. Grand juries may request additional evidence such as witness testimony or documents to investigate on their own unimpeded by outside influence.

The Supreme Court case United States v. Williams (1992) said that a grand jury is "a kind of buffer or referee between the Government and the people." It decides if there is enough evidence to formally charge a suspect with a crime.

See also

• Noteworthy criminal misconduct in American politics (2023-2024)
• Donald Trump
• Donald Trump indictments, 2023-2025
• New York prosecution of Donald Trump, 2023-2025
• Federal prosecution of Donald Trump, 2023-2024 (classified documents case)
• Georgia prosecution of Donald Trump, 2023-2024
• Impeachment of Donald Trump, 2021
• Aftermath of the January 6, 2021, breach of the U.S. Capitol

Footnotes

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