Trump pleads not guilty to attempted election manipulation

This is the fourth criminal case against the tycoon, who is once again running for the White House and remains the favourite for the Republican primaries. His trial date in this case has not yet been set.

Summoned on 6 September for his public arraignment in Georgia, the ex-President indicated in the court document that he was waiving his right to appear before the judge and should therefore not travel to Atlanta again.

Mr Trump and 18 others, including his former lawyer Rudy Giuliani, were charged in mid-August with unlawful attempts to reverse the outcome of the 2020 election in this key state, won by current Democratic President Joe Biden.

The law on organised crime, used by the prosecutor in this case, provides for sentences of five to twenty years' imprisonment.

In this case, Donald Trump had to go to an Atlanta prison last week to be put on file. There, he was subjected to a mug shot, a first for a former US president, before quickly leaving.

Legal marathon

The septuagenarian is also accused in New York of making suspicious payments to a former X-rated actress, and by the federal justice system of lobbying during the 2020 presidential election, as well as negligent handling of confidential documents after he left the White House.

The former president has pleaded not guilty in all these cases. He systematically attributes his legal setbacks to the Biden administration, which he accuses of "electoral interference" to block his path to the White House. Joe Biden is also a candidate for the next presidential election.

"I have done nothing wrong" by calling into question the results of the 2020 presidential election, the tribune insisted.

In any case, the tempestuous Republican is gearing up for an extraordinary year in 2024, with an election campaign and several trials in March and May - a timetable that could still change. The presidential election will be held in November.

Paradoxically, each legal twist brings him millions of dollars in campaign donations from Trump supporters convinced that he is the victim of a political cabal.

Text by Keystone-ATS