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District Attorney Fani Willis
Photo: Alex Slitz / AP
District Attorney Fani Willis was not disqualified in the election manipulation trial against former US President Donald Trump in the state of Georgia.
The judge in charge, Scott McAfee, rejected the Trump lawyers' request to remove Willis from the case and drop the charges against their client.
Willis had come under pressure because she had a relationship with the special prosecutor assigned to the case, Nathan Wade.
McAfee said there was insufficient evidence to show that Willis had a conflict of interest.
However, the judge made it a condition that either she and her team or special investigator Wade withdraw from the case.
Trump and a total of 18 other defendants were originally charged in Georgia in August 2023 on 41 allegations.
These include conspiracy to commit forgery, conspiracy to make false statements, making false documents, and incitement to violate an oath of office.
After the election at the end of 2020, the elected president called for "finding" the 11,780 votes necessary for his victory in the southern state in a famous phone call with Georgia's election director Brad Raffensperger.
In addition, the confirmation of Joe Biden's victory should be prevented by false electoral votes for Trump.
Delay in the start of the process is still likely
Willis had requested that the trial begin on August 5th - exactly three months before the presidential election, which will most likely see a repeat of the duel between Biden and Trump.
If she had been removed from the case, this appointment would not have been possible.
But even now, the controversy over Willis' relationship has made a verdict unlikely before the presidential election.
Even the date for the start of the trial is no longer guaranteed.
Trump is also facing federal charges over his attempts to overturn the 2020 election results.
In total he is criminally charged in four cases.
col/AFP