By KATE BRUMBACK (Associated Press)
ATLANTA (AP) — While Donald Trump aims to return to the White House, the people who attempted to assist him in remaining there in 2020 by promoting false voter fraud claims are facing numerous criminal charges.
In 2020, at least five states won by President Joe Biden have looked into efforts to establish groups of electors who would cast Electoral College votes for Trump despite his defeat. These groups were intended to be used by Trump's allies in the House and Senate to justify delaying or obstructing the election certification during the Congress joint session on Jan. 6, 2021, which was disrupted by pro-Trump rioters who stormed the Capitol.
Some of the individuals charged or accused of involvement in election interference across the states are still engaged in Republican politics today — including the attorney overseeing “election integrity” for the Republican National Committee. Additionally, Trump, who faces federal charges in Washington and state charges in Georgia for his attempts to overturn Biden’s victory, often asserts that the 2020 election was stolen, a claim echoed by many of his supporters.
Here’s a look at the extensive range of allegations, criminal charges, and references to individuals in Trump’s circle as unindicted co-conspirators.
DONALD TRUMP
The former president is confronting state charges in Georgia and federal charges in Washington related to his endeavors to reverse his 2020 election loss and has been named as an unindicted co-conspirator by investigators in Arizona and Michigan.
The Georgia charges were brought in a far-reaching racketeering indictment in Fulton County in August, alleging that Trump and 18 others took part in a broad scheme — which included the Republican elector effort — to unlawfully try to overturn his narrow defeat in the state.
Trump is the sole individual indicted in the federal indictment in Washington, but several close associates are identified as unindicted co-conspirators.
Trump has denied any wrongdoing, and the U.S. Supreme Court is considering his arguments for immunity from prosecution. He has secured his third consecutive Republican presidential nomination.
RUDY GIULIANI
Among the charges facing the former New York mayor and Trump-affiliated lawyer in Georgia are racketeering and conspiracy. The charges against him in Arizona have not yet been disclosed.
In Michigan, a state investigator has stated that Giuliani is one of many prominent unindicted co-conspirators in a case against Republicans who signed false elector certificates claiming Trump had won the state.
He also appears as an unindicted co-conspirator in the federal indictment in Washington, which cites his remarks at the “Stop the Steal” rally preceding the Capitol riot.
His spokesperson, Ted Goodman, expressed on Thursday that the “continued weaponization of our justice system should concern every American as it does permanent, irrevocable harm to the country.”
CHRISTINA BOBB
Bobb, a lawyer and conservative media figure facing charges in Arizona, collaborated closely with Giuliani as he sought to convince Arizona lawmakers to block the election results' certification. Subsequently, she raised funds for a discredited audit of the election results in Maricopa County and reported on the event for One America News Network.
As Trump's attorney, Bobb signed a letter saying that a thorough search for classified records had been done and all such documents had been returned to the government before the FBI found dozens of protected documents at his Mar-a-Lago home. “diligent search” for classified records had been conducted and that all such documents had been given back to the government before an FBI search revealed dozens of protected documents at his Mar-a-Lago residence.
She was recently chosen to oversee “election integrity” efforts at the Republican National Committee.
When asked about Bobb’s role with the RNC, Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung accused Democrats of using the legal system as a weapon.
BORIS EPSHTEYN
A longtime Trump aide, Epshteyn was accused in Arizona of assisting with the fake electors plan by a grand jury.
He’s a lawyer who has been by Trump’s side for some of the former president’s own court appearances, including Thursday in New York.
Epshteyn was a main representative in the 2016 presidential campaign, making frequent television appearances. He briefly served as a senior White House adviser before becoming an analyst for Sinclair Broadcast Group.
MARK MEADOWS
Trump’s White House chief is indicted in the extensive Georgia racketeering case, but not related to the Republican elector meeting. Among other things, he participated in a January 2021 phone call between Trump and Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger during which the then-president encouraged the elections official to help “find” the votes needed to overturn his narrow loss in the state.
Meadows’ charges in Arizona are not publicly known. He was also identified by the Michigan state investigator as an unindicted co-conspirator.
His attorney, George Terwilliger, referred to Wednesday’s indictment in Arizona as a “blatantly political and politicized accusation and will be contested and defeated.”
Meadows now works for the Conservative Policy Institute, a Washington think tank that describes his role as leading “strategic initiatives on Capitol Hill, with other partner organizations, and with grassroots activists across the country.”
JOHN EASTMAN
A former leader of Chapman University’s law school in Southern California, Eastman wrote a memo arguing that Trump could stay in power if then-Vice President Mike Pence overturned the results of the electoral certification during a joint session of Congress using the slates of Republican electors from the battleground states.
The charges against him in Georgia include racketeering and conspiracy, while the Arizona charges have not been made public. He’s also named as an unindicted co-conspirator in the federal indictment, which quotes his remarks at the Jan. 6, 2021, “Stop the Steal” rally in Washington.
He has pleaded not guilty to the charges in Georgia and his lawyer Charles Burnham said he’s innocent of the charges in Arizona.
JENNA ELLIS
Ellis was charged in the Georgia indictment after she appeared with Giuliani at a December 2020 hearing hosted by state Republican lawmakers at the Georgia Capitol during which false allegations of election fraud were made. She pleaded guilty in October to one felony count of aiding and abetting false statements and writings after reaching a deal with prosecutors. She wasn’t charged in connection with the Republican electors efforts in Georgia.
It was not immediately clear whether she had a lawyer in Arizona who could comment on charges she faces there, which have not yet been made public.
MICHAEL ROMAN
A Trump campaign staffer and former White House aide, Roman was charged with several conspiracy counts related to the Republican elector meeting and the filing of the elector certificate in Georgia. He was also charged in Arizona.
Roman has pleaded not guilty to the charges in Georgia. It was not immediately clear whether he had a lawyer in Arizona yet.
KENNETH CHESEBRO
Chesebro, a lawyer, collaborated with Republicans in multiple swing states to coordinate and execute the Trump elector plan. He was charged with racketeering and several conspiracy counts in relation to that work in Georgia and in October reached a deal with prosecutors to plead guilty to one felony charge of conspiracy to commit filing false documents.
Chesebro is an unindicted co-conspirator in Trump’s federal election indictment, which says he “assisted in devising and attempting to implement a plan to submit fraudulent slates of presidential electors to obstruct the certification proceeding.”
He was also named in the Wisconsin civil lawsuit, and when he turned over documents to settle that suit he did not admit liability but promised never to participate in similar efforts.
SIDNEY POWELL
A lawyer and unwavering Trump ally, Powell was charged with racketeering and conspiracy charges in Georgia but was not implicated in the elector scheme. The Fulton County indictment accused her of participating in an unauthorized breach of elections equipment in a rural Georgia county elections office. She pleaded guilty in October to six misdemeanors accusing her of conspiring to intentionally interfere with the performance of election duties after reaching a deal with prosecutors.
She’s an unindicted co-conspirator in the federal election interference case, where prosecutors say she filed a lawsuit in Georgia that amplified false or unsupported claims of election fraud.
JEFFREY CLARK
Clark was a U.S. Justice Department official who championed Trump’s false claims of election fraud. He was charged in Georgia with racketeering and criminal attempt to commit false statements and writings after he presented colleagues with a draft letter pushing Georgia officials to convene a special legislative session on the election results.
He has pleaded not guilty to the charges in Georgia.
He was also one of the unindicted co-conspirators in the federal election indictment against Trump.
REPUBLICAN TRUMP ELECTORS
In addition to Arizona, criminal charges have been filed against Republicans who presented themselves as electors in Michigan, Georgia and Nevada. Wisconsin Republicans who signed elector certificates reached a settlement in a civil lawsuit, admitting their actions were part of an effort to overturn Biden’s victory. No charges have been filed in Pennsylvania or New Mexico, with the attorney general in the latter saying there’s no avenue for prosecution under state law.
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