The 2024 presidential election features a unique wrinkle in the form of Donald Trump’s New York trial and three other legal cases pending against the former president.
The trial, which is now in its final stages, opens up several scenarios that have never played out before. Can Trump become president if he’s convicted of a felony before the election? What if he wins while serving in prison? Can he pardon himself after entering the White House?
On the first, perhaps most crucial, question, the answer is yes.
Read More : Federal Judge Suspends Joe Biden’s Plan to Slash Credit Card Late Fees to $8
“Article I of the Constitution sets out three requirements to be president. You have to be 35 years old, a natural-born citizen, and 14 years a resident within the U.S.,” Heritage Foundation legal scholar Hans von Spakovsky said. “Being a convicted felon is not a bar to being president.”
While the related question of whether voters will put someone with a criminal record in the White House is another factor to weigh, another legal issue is what happens if Trump were elected while serving a prison sentence.
Georgia State University law professor Anthony Michael Kreis said Trump would have to be let go in order to serve in the Oval Office — with one catch.
“New York officials would have to spring Trump free if he was in the state’s custody [and won the election],” he said. “But he would still have to serve out his time after the conclusion of his second term.”
However, this particular scenario will probably remain a hypothetical, he added.
“For a first-time nonviolent offender in New York, it is highly unlikely that he’d face incarceration of any length,” Kreis said. “And the chance that one of the two federal cases has a jury empaneled quick enough to have deliberations before Election Day is almost zero.”
Read More : The Key Differences Between A Passport Card & A Passport Book
Despite the low odds, Secret Service agents have already met with New York corrections officers to prepare for the possibility, according to CBS News. The Washington Examiner has contacted the Secret Service for comment.
Legal scholars have debated for years whether a president can pardon himself.
Yet another question is whether Trump could vote for himself if convicted, as Florida does not allow felons to vote. According to von Spakovsky, the answer is technically no but could easily be amended by the Sunshine State’s GOP-dominated legislature.
“Nothing would prevent the state legislature from passing a special bill specifically giving [Trump] the ability to vote after he is convicted,” he said. “The decision over whether a convicted felon can vote is entirely within the authority of state legislatures under the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.”
Due to the Constitution’s sparse requirements for serving as president, von Spakovsky says Trump could technically be elected and actually serve as president from within a jail cell.
“If elected, Trump could be sworn into office and act as president even if he was in prison,” he said. “The only way he could be removed from office is through impeachment.”
Thus, while many Democrats hope Trump’s New York trial will damage him politically and hurt his chances of being elected, the outcome of the trial from a legal standpoint will not affect his ability to serve if he wins.
Read More : 7 superfoods for hair growth: Unlocking the power of nature
Most agree he could not do so for state crimes but could potentially issue a self-pardon for federal crimes. Even if Trump does, that power would not help him in his New York and Georgia prosecutions, and he would remain a convicted felon in those states should a jury find him guilty, even if did not affect his ability to serve as president.
