Donald Trump’s former chief of staff and other allies plead not guilty in Georgia election case
Donald Trump’s former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and two other allies of the former US president have pleaded not guilty to charges in the Georgia election subversion case.
Key points:
- Mark Meadows and lawyers John Eastman and Jeffrey Clark all waived formal arraignments
- They form part of Mr Trump’s 17 co-defendants, accused of trying to overturn his 2020 election defeat
- Mr Meadows allegedly took part in the call in which Mr Trump pushed the Georgia secretary of state to “find” enough votes
Mr Meadows and lawyers John Eastman and Jeffrey Clark all entered their pleas in paperwork and waived formal arraignment, which had been scheduled for Wednesday in Fulton County Superior Court.
The three were charged last month, along with Mr Trump and 15 co-defendants, with trying to overturn Mr Trump’s 2020 election defeat to Democrat Joe Biden.
Mr Meadows attended White House meetings related to Mr Trump’s attempt to undo his election defeat.
Prosecutors allege he helped to fuel the conspiracy by making false statements about the election and conspired with Mr Trump to develop a plan to disrupt and delay the congress certifying the election on January 6, 2021.
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Mr Meadows allegedly tried to pressure a chief investigator in the Georgia secretary of state’s office to speed up the Fulton County signature verification.
He also took part in the alleged phone call in which Mr Trump pushed Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to “find” enough votes to reverse his narrow loss in the state.
Mr Raffensperger declined to do so.
Mr Meadows and four other co-conspirators are seeking to move the charges against them to federal court.
Mr Eastman represented Mr Trump in a lawsuit to overturn voting results in four states the former president lost in 2020.
The Fulton County indictment alleges Mr Eastman was part of a plot to appoint fake electors.
Mr Eastman’s legal representative have called the indictment an effort to criminalise lawful political speech.
Mr Clark was a high-ranking US Justice Department official who allegedly sought to persuade Mr Trump to oust acting attorney-general Jeffrey Rosen so that he could take over the department and open an investigation into voter fraud in Georgia and other states.
Mr Trump and his former personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, pleaded not guilty last week and waived a formal arraignment.
The Georgia charges marked Mr Trump’s fourth indictment since he launched his presidential election campaign in November last year.
Despite his criminal cases, he is still the frontrunner for his party’s 2024 presidential nomination.
Reuters/ AP
