Here are the legal hurdles still standing between Trump and Election Day
Special counsel Jack Smith's surprise re-indictment of Donald Trump in the federal election subversion case Tuesday was a jarring reminder for the former president: Even though he has managed to stave off trials in three of his four criminal cases, he still faces legal landmines in his final two-month push to return to the White House.
As the 2024 race approaches the post-Labor Day crunch, a few high-stakes hearings and key deadlines are likely to remind voters of the long list of felony charges he faces — and could even briefly sideline Trump from the campaign trail. Most significantly, Trump could be sentenced in Manhattan next month — when early voting begins in some states — for his conviction on state fraud charges in the hush money case.
Here's a look at where Trump's four criminal cases stand.
Trump is scheduled to be sentenced in September in New York
On Sept. 18, Trump is scheduled to learn whether his road to the White House could be derailed by a pit stop in prison.
Less than two months before Election Day, Trump is set to be sentenced for his criminal conviction in Manhattan for falsifying business records to cover up a hush money payment to a porn star. Trump succeeded in getting the sentencing date moved from July to September after convincing Justice Juan Merchan to assess the potential effect of the Supreme Court's July 1 decision on presidential immunity in the hush money case
Trump is now attempting to get the sentencing pushed again , arguing that he needs time to weigh appellate options once Merchan rules on the immunity issue. But if Merchan rejects Trump's bid for another delay, voters will learn in mid-September whether the Republican nominee faces a range of possible punishments, including community service, home confinement and up to four years in prison.
Still, while the optics of prison time aren't likely to boost his presidential prospects, the practical impact of the sentence may not take Trump off the campaign trail. Trump likely won't have to serve whatever sentence he receives until after he has exhausted the appeals process, which could take years.
And if he wins in November, he almost certainly won't be required to serve his sentence until after he leaves the White House.
Trump might have to appear in D.C. court after Jack Smith's latest indictment
Aside from the potential for actual prison time in New York, only Trump's Washington criminal case — in which he's charged with three conspiracies related to his effort to subvert the 2020 election — carries the potential to disrupt Trump's campaign calendar.
Smith's new indictment this week, an effort to adapt his case to the Supreme Court's recent ruling on presidential immunity, will ignite a new round of proceedings that will be directed by U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan. The Obama-appointed judge has yet to schedule Trump's arraignment on the re-issued charges.
Smith's team has agreed that Trump's presence is not necessary for the new arraignment — particularly given the enormous security preparations it requires to ferry him in and out of the federal courthouse on Capitol Hill — but the decision is Chutkan's. Even if the judge allows Trump to skip his arraignment, she may seek further court dates in the case that could force Trump off the trail during crucial weeks of the campaign.
Chutkan has repeatedly vowed not to let Trump's political calendar dictate her schedule. Her decision is likely to be influenced by a court filing due Friday from Smith and Trump proposing a path forward for the long-stalled case. Smith's new indictment makes clear he still intends for Trump's former vice president, Mike Pence, to be a star witness in the case. Though a trial is likely several months away, court fights over future testimony could drive significant media attention in the final stretch of the campaign.
Jack Smith tries to revive the classified docs case
U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon threw Trump a lifeline in what many legal observers have considered the most compelling case against him: Smith's case that the former president hoarded classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate after leaving office — and then concealed them when the federal government sought their return.
Cannon's decision to dismiss the case last month, ruling that Smith was invalidly appointed by Attorney General Merrick Garland, ended speculation about the timing of a potential trial. But Smith is appealing her ruling to the Atlanta-based 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, with further briefs due over the next two months and a potential oral argument later in the year.
Those filings and proceedings are sure to draw attention in the closing weeks of the 2024 campaign but are unlikely to be resolved before Nov. 5. No matter how the appeals court rules, the losing side can bring further challenges, perhaps to the Supreme Court, that are certain to kick the outcome of the case into 2025.
Trump catches an extended break in Georgia
The implosion of Trump's criminal case in Georgia — now mired in a morass of allegations about lead prosecutor Fani Willis' personal relationship with a top deputy and an alleged financial conflict of interest — has largely rendered it an afterthought in the panoply of Trump's legal woes.
For eight months, the case has been frozen while trial judge Scott McAfee, and now the Georgia state appeals court, weigh whether to disqualify Willis altogether, a result that could add to the already intractable delay. No matter the outcome, the case is sure to remain frozen into 2025. The appeals court has called for oral arguments in December and typically takes months to render opinions.
Even if Willis is permitted to continue leading the case, it remains a long way from trial. The Fulton County district attorney will need to revise her criminal case against Trump and his allies to reflect the impact of the Supreme Court's immunity ruling, just as Smith did in Washington. And there is a long list of pretrial matters that McAfee has yet to resolve.
