Statement on affair allegations
Trump accuser admits “personal relationship.”
February 3, 2024, 1:19 a.m
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Former US President Donald Trump has been charged with attempted election fraud in the state of Georgia. Recently, the public prosecutor there comes under pressure: the Trump camp accuses her of having an affair with a colleague. Now she is speaking out about the allegations for the first time.
US District Attorney Fani Willis, who is leading a criminal investigation against former President Donald Trump in the state of Georgia for attempted election fraud, has commented specifically on allegations against her for the first time. The 53-year-old had been accused of having a romantic relationship with Nathan Wade, one of the other prosecutors in the case. Both would have illegally benefited financially because of this relationship.
Willis acknowledged a “personal relationship” with Wade, but emphasized that there was no conflict of interest that would justify removing her from the case. This emerges from a 176-page opinion that the court published.
The allegations were originally made by lawyers for a co-defendant, Trump’s former campaign aide Mike Roman. They had not only asked the judge in charge, Scott McAfee, to remove Willis from the case, but also to drop the entire charge against their client. Trump and other co-defendants joined the demand. McAfee had scheduled a hearing for mid-February and gave Willis until Friday to respond. In her opinion, Willis asked the judge to deny the motions without a hearing.
Campaign worker Roman was indicted last year alongside former President Trump as one of 18 other defendants for alleged attempts to overturn the outcome of the 2020 presidential election in Georgia. Trump had lost to Democrat Joe Biden at the time and tried in various ways to subsequently change the election result, including by putting pressure on political leaders at the federal level and in states such as Georgia.
Some of Trump’s former associates entered into a deal with prosecutors after the indictment and pleaded guilty. Prosecutor Willis is aiming for a quick start to the trial, while Trump and his supporters want to delay the start of the trial as much as possible.