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Former President Donald Trump is facing charges over his attempt to overturn the 2020 election.
On Tuesday (August 1), Trump was indicted by a grand jury convened by special counsel Jack Smith. He was indicted on four charges including, conspiracy to defraud the U.S., conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, obstruction of and attempt to obstruct an official proceeding, and conspiracy against rights, NBC News reports.
The 45-page indictment alleges that Trump and other co-conspirators repeatedly spread false claims of election fraud, despite officials in the Department of Justice, senior attorneys, and former Vice President Mike Pence advising him that they "had seen no evidence of outcome-determinative fraud”.
"The defendant lost the 2020 presidential election,” the indictment reads. “Despite having lost, the defendant was determined to remain in power. So for more than two months following election day on November 3, 2020, the defendant spread lies … that he had actually won.”
Following the indictment, Trump is scheduled to appear before a federal magistrate judge in Washington DC on Thursday (August 3). If convicted, Trump may face up to decades in prison, but "federal penalties are rarely as high as the maximum possible sentence," per The Guardian.
Trump is still eligible to stand for office despite his latest indictments and possible conviction.
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