One Year Later, Can Fanis Willis Still Go to Trial in the Georgia Election Case Against Trump?

It’s been a year since a Georgia grand jury accused ex-president Donald Trump and others of trying to overturn the 2020 presidential election. Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis boldly led the crusade against Trump and his alleged illegal behavior.

Willis managed to secure the indictment against Trump, which was just one of the criminal cases against him. She enacted Georgia’s anti-racketeering law to allege that Trump and 18 others worked together in an attempt to illegally achieve the results they wanted.

However, the case has stalled and has no chance of going to trial before the end of this year, according to AP News. Four of the 18 people who were charged alongside Trump in Georgia ultimately pleaded guilty to lesser charges after reaching plea deals with prosecutors shortly after the indictment.

Even though things were off to a promising start, in January an attorney for co-defendant and former Trump campaign employee Michael Roman alleged in a court filing that Willis was dating lawyer Nathan Wade. Wade was the person Willis selected to lead the prosecution against Trump and his cohorts.

The shocking hearing to address the salacious allegations was broadcast live on television. At its conclusion, Judge McAfee acknowledged Willis’ “lapse in judgment,” but said she could proceed with the case as long as Wade resigned. Wade stepped down hours later.

However, this opened the floodgates, with Trump and several defendants appealing McAfee’s ruling. The Georgia Court of Appeals plans to hear arguments in December, with a ruling taking place by the middle of March 2025.

Additionally, the Court has banned McAfee from doing anything regarding the case and Trump and others while the appeal is underway. Last month, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that former presidents have absolute immunity from prosecution for official acts that fall within their “exclusive sphere of constitutional authority.”

Even if Willis is allowed to continue to prosecute Trump, his lawyers may use the Supreme Court ruling to push for the case to be dismissed.