The federal judge overseeing the case on former President Donald Trump’s alleged interference in the 2020 election scheduled his trial for March 4, 2024.
Trump’s legal team pushed for an April 2026 start date, opposing Special Counsel Jack Smith’s effort to start the trial on January 2, 2024 — just before the first-in-the-nation Iowa caucus is scheduled to begin. U.S. District Judge for the District of Columbia Tanya Chutkan, an Obama appointee, rejected both proposals.
Chutkan said during the hearing that the trial date should not be dependent on Trump’s personal and professional obligations, while noting the court would account for his scheduled trials in other cases, according to reports.
Trump pleaded not guilty Aug. 3 in Washington D.C. to charges related to his alleged efforts to interfere in the 2020 election and perceived involvement in the January 6 riots.
In his August 17 court filing, Trump’s legal team told Chutkan their proposed 2026 start date would provide time to “review all material information, advance appropriate motions, and apprise the Court of relevant legal issues,” noting the materials produced by the government’s two-and-a-half year investigation surpass 11.5 million pages. The time would also be “equal to the government’s time spent investigating,” his lawyers noted.
Chutkan denied Smith’s request to restrict Trump from disclosing any evidence in the case on August 11, instead adopting a protective order restricting him from disclosing some “sensitive” material and imposing limits on his conduct.
Trump’s trial in Florida for his alleged mishandling of classified documents is scheduled to begin May 20, 2024. A date for his Georgia case on alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election in the state has not yet been set.
A Georgia state judge approved an Oct. 23 start date for one of Trump’s co-defendants, Kenneth Chesebro, who filed a demand for a speedy trial. A hearing was also scheduled Monday to consider Mark Meadow’s request to remove his case to federal court, where Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensberger testified.
Several other defendants have made the same request as Meadows, and Trump may soon also request to move his case.
Katelynn Richardson on August 28, 2023
