An Atlanta grand jury has indicted Donald Trump and 18 others for attempting to interfere in the 2020 presidential election in the state of georgia, where Democrat Joe Biden narrowly won. The 41 charges have been filed following an investigation by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis for “conspiring and unlawfully engaging in the direction and participation in criminal activity,” according to CNN.

The former president and his associates face more than a dozen charges for violating Georgia’s Corrupt and Influenced by Racketeering Organizations (RICO) law, including conspiracy to nullify election results. Among those charged with the former president are the one who was his personal lawyer and former mayor of New York, Rudy Giulianiand his former chief of staff, Mark Meadows.

In addition, Trump has been accused of incite public officialsincluding former Vice President Mike Pence, to violate his oath, making false statements, distributing fraudulent documents at polling stations, harassing poll workers after his defeat in Georgia, and obstructing. Specifically, according to the accusation document, of almost 100 pages, the former president faces a total of 13 charges.

Until August 25 to deliver

“Trump and the other defendants they refused to accept that he lostand knowingly and willingly joined a conspiracy to illegally change the outcome of the election in favor of Trump,” stated the indictment, which also included 30 unindicted accomplices. “That conspiracy contained a common plan and purpose to commit two or more acts of racketeering activity in Fulton County, Georgia, elsewhere in Georgia, and in other states.”

The Prosecutor’s Office has also alleged that Trump and his associates “engaged in various interrelated criminal activities such as”impersonation of a public officialattempting to bribe witnesses, computer theft, computer burglary, computer invasion of privacy, conspiracy to defraud the State and acts related to theft and perjury”.

In addition, Willis has announced a arrest warrant against defendantsalthough it has given them until August 25 to “voluntarily surrender”. For their part, Trump’s lawyers Drew Findling and Jennifer Little have called the accusation “shocking” and “ridiculous”, and that they await review of a “flawed and unconstitutional” accusation. The Prosecutor’s Office intends to prosecute Trump in the next six months, a process that has already been assigned to Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee.

A call to “seek” votes, the origin of the case

According to leaks about the investigations of the case published by the US media, the origin of the investigation was a call between Trump and Georgia secretary of stateBrad Raffensperger, in which the former president I would have asked him to “look for” the votes that were necessary to annul Biden’s victory in that state.

Before the accusation was officially known, the former president lashed out on his social network, Truth Social, against the prosecutor Willis and denied the allegations. “I made a perfect phone call in protestWhy weren’t the charges filed two years ago?” the ex-president wrote. “Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis desperately wants to indict me on the ridiculous claim of 2020 presidential rigging.No, I did not rig the election!“Trump asserted.

In recent months, various Trump allies have gone before the grand jury to testify, such as Giuliani or Raffensperger himself, who was responsible for ratifying the electoral results in Georgia.

Trump’s other pending cases

It’s about the fourth indictment Trump receives, and the second for trying to interfere in the elections. Unlike the charges filed by special prosecutor Jack Smith, who accuses him of having tried to reverse his electoral defeat – which would culminate in the assault on the Capitol – Trump could not pardon himself nor to his partners if he is found guilty in Georgia, even if he is re-elected president, as it is a state conviction.

Trump, the first US president to be charged in the history of the North American country, was already charged in March in the framework of the investigation against him for the alleged bribed the porn actress Stormy Danielsand also faces 40 charges in the case of the classified documentsthat he took from the White House after the end of his term and were found in his Florida mansion.