May 29th 2024.
Former President Donald Trump is currently waiting for the decision of the jury in his landmark hush money trial. As the jury deliberates, the question on everyone's mind is whether he can still run for president if he is found guilty.
The US Constitution provides clear answers to some of the questions that have arisen from this unprecedented situation. However, it does not directly address all of the issues that have emerged from Trump's trial. One such question is whether he can continue his presidential campaign if he is convicted.
According to American law, the answer is straightforward. The only requirements for a presidential candidate are that they must be at least 35 years old, a natural born citizen, and have lived in the US for at least 14 years. There are no restrictions in place regarding a candidate's criminal record.
This means that even if Trump is convicted in Manhattan Criminal Court, he would still be able to run for president. While some states do have restrictions on individuals with felony convictions running for state or local office, there are no such limitations at the federal level. As the president of the Constitutional Accountability Centre, Elizabeth Wydra, stated, "Nothing prevents him from running for president and being elected, even if he is in jail at the time of the election."
Despite the ongoing trial and the possibility of a conviction, Trump has made it clear that he intends to continue his presidential campaign. He has denied any wrongdoing in the case, where he is accused of falsifying business records to conceal a payment made to porn star Stormy Daniels in 2016.
This trial is just one of four criminal indictments that Trump is currently facing. However, it is the only one that is expected to be resolved before the upcoming November election. The former president's legal team has been successful in delaying the other indictments, which include allegations of withholding classified documents and attempting to overturn the 2020 election in Georgia and Washington, DC.
If Trump is convicted in the hush money case, he could face a sentence ranging from probation to four years in prison. However, even if he is in prison, he would still be legally eligible to serve as the country's commander-in-chief if he were to be elected. What would happen in that scenario is still unclear, as Loyola Law School professor Jessica Levinson stated, "I don't think the framers ever thought we would be in this situation." Erwin Chemerinsky, a constitutional law expert at the University of California, Berkeley, also added, "We're so far removed from anything that's ever happened...it's just guessing."
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