Former President Donald Trump was found guilty on all 34 counts in his hush money trial and can still be elected president — even though he was convicted — experts told ABC News.
But there are practical reasons that could make it a challenge, experts told ABC News after Trump was indicted by the Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg last April.
Trump maintained his innocence after the verdict was reached on Thursday, “This was a disgrace,” Trump told reporters. “This was a rigged trial by a conflicted judge who was corrupt. It’s a rigged trial, a disgrace.”
Sentencing is scheduled for July 11.
Constitutional experts also told ABC News that previous Supreme Court rulings hold that Congress cannot add qualifications to the office of the president. In addition, a state cannot prohibit indicted or convicted felons from running for federal office.
The U.S. Constitution does not list the absence of a criminal record as a qualification for the presidency. It says only that natural-born citizens who are at least 35 years old and have been a resident of the U.S. for 14 years can run for president.
Republican presidential candidate and former President Donald Trump reacts as the verdict is read in his criminal trial over charges that he falsified business records to conceal money paid to silence porn star Stormy Daniels in 2016, at Manhattan state court in New York, May 30, 2024, in this courtroom sketch.
Jane Rosenberg/Reuters
“Some people are surprised to learn that there’s no constitutional bar on a felon running for president, but there’s no such bar,” said Kate Shaw, ABC News legal analyst and professor at the University of Pennsylvania Law School.
He’s also said he will still run even if convicted, in an interview with radio host John Fredericks, Trump was asked whether a conviction would put an end to his White House campaign.
“Not at all, there’s nothing in the Constitution to say that it could and not at all,” he said.
The former president had a similarly defiant tone last year at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) when he told the crowd he would “absolutely” stay in the race for president even if he were to be criminally indicted.
No charges had been brought against him at the time.
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“Because of the 22nd Amendment, the individual can’t have been twice elected president previously,” Shaw said. “But there’s nothing in the Constitution disqualifying individuals convicted of crimes from running for or serving as president.”
Shaw said that while incarceration “would presumably make campaigning difficult if not impossible,” the impediment would be a “practical problem, not a legal one.”
James Sampler, a constitutional law professor at Hofstra University, told ABC News that the Constitution sets the minimum requirements, but leaves the rest up to the voters.
“It depends on the wisdom of the people to determine that an individual is not fit for office,” Sampler said. “So the most fundamental obstacle that President Trump has in seeking office in 2024 is the obstacle that anyone has, but he has it in a different and more pronounced way — which is proving to the voters that the individual deserves the office.”
If Trump were to be prevented by law from traveling out of state, Sampler said, that would impose a practical limitation on his ability to travel the country and campaign — but it wouldn’t prohibit him from running.
Sampler also pointed out an irony in the electoral system, in which many states bar convicted felons from voting.
“It is a sad day for a country that ostensibly values democratic participation and equality, that individuals who’ve been convicted of a felony can be prohibited from participating even as voters in our democracy, but a president convicted of a felony is still allowed,” he said, Jessica Levinson, a professor of election law at Loyola Law School, agreed.
“The interesting thing about the qualifications like you have to be born here, you have to live here for a certain amount of time … all of that is kind of getting at the idea that we want you to be loyal to our country,” Levinson said. “But you could conceivably be convicted of crimes against our country, and still be able to serve as president.”
Trump has denied all wrongdoing in each of the investigations, calling them partisan witch hunts intended to interfere with his 2024 presidential bid.
The recent case involving former President Donald Trump and his alleged involvement in hush money payments has raised questions about the possibility of a president being elected after being convicted in such a case. In Trump’s case, he was accused of directing his former lawyer, Michael Cohen, to make hush money payments to two women who claimed to have had affairs with him.
The legal implications of this case are complex and have sparked debates among legal experts and political analysts. While Trump was impeached by the House of Representatives for abuse of power and obstruction of Congress, he was ultimately acquitted by the Senate. However, the hush money case is a separate legal matter that could potentially lead to criminal charges against him.
One of the key questions surrounding this issue is whether a president can be elected after being convicted in a hush money case. The Constitution does not explicitly address this scenario, so it would ultimately be up to the courts to interpret the law. Some legal experts argue that a conviction in a hush money case could be grounds for disqualification from holding public office, including the presidency.
However, others believe that the American people have the ultimate say in who they elect as their president, regardless of any legal issues they may have faced in the past. In Trump’s case, his supporters have remained loyal to him despite the controversies surrounding him, suggesting that public opinion could play a significant role in determining whether a convicted individual could be elected as president.
Ultimately, the question of whether a president can be elected after being convicted in a hush money case is a complex and contentious issue that will likely continue to be debated in the years to come. As the legal system grapples with how to address such cases, it will be important for voters to carefully consider the character and integrity of candidates before casting their ballots in future elections.
