Trump's Questionable Actions: Did He Break The Law?

Former US President Donald Trump has been accused of breaking the law on several occasions. One notable incident involves Trump allegedly pressuring a Georgia election official to find enough votes to overturn his loss to Joe Biden in the state. Legal experts argue that Trump may have violated federal and state laws against election tampering and criminal solicitation to commit election fraud. Trump has also been charged with four criminal counts, including conspiracy to defraud the US and conspiracy against citizens' rights, in relation to his efforts to overturn the 2020 election results. The Supreme Court granted Trump partial immunity in this case, sparking controversy and concerns about presidential accountability.

Trump pressured Georgia election officials to 'find' votes

On January 2, 2021, US President Donald Trump pressured Georgia's top election official, Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, to "find" enough votes to overturn his defeat in the southern state to President-elect Joe Biden. This was recorded in an hour-long phone call published by US media on Sunday, January 3, 2021.

During the conversation, Trump repeatedly asked Raffensperger to "find" more than 11,000 ballots needed to overcome the gap between Trump and Biden in the state, thereby flipping the state in his favor. Trump told Raffensperger:

> "All I want to do is this: I just want to find 11,780 votes, which is one more than we have. Because we won the state."

Georgia counted its votes three times, with final results showing Biden won by 11,779 more votes than Trump out of nearly 5 million cast.

Some legal experts argue that Trump may have broken a US federal law and a Georgia law against election tampering. Georgia has a state law against "criminal solicitation to commit election fraud," which makes it illegal for a person to intentionally solicit another person to engage in election fraud. There is also a separate federal law that makes it illegal to attempt to "deprive or defraud" people of a "fair and impartially conducted election process."

In response to the call, Raffensperger told ABC's "Good Morning America" program that a criminal investigation into Trump's actions could be launched in the state by Atlanta-area prosecutor Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis.

However, others have expressed doubt that federal charges would be brought against Trump, noting that Biden has said a Trump criminal trial would not be in the national interest.

Trump's immunity for criminal conduct while in office

In July 2024, the Supreme Court ruled that former President Trump has broad immunity for official acts carried out during his time in office. This means that he cannot be prosecuted for his attempts to use the Justice Department to obstruct the results of the 2020 election. The Supreme Court's ruling has been criticised by the ACLU, which argued that the decision sets a dangerous precedent by giving presidents legal cover to break the law when using their formal powers.

The Supreme Court's ruling does not mean that Trump is entirely immune from prosecution for his actions while in office. The court rejected Trump's claim to absolute immunity for all acts unless convicted after an impeachment trial, and left it to lower courts to determine whether specific actions were official or personal acts, and whether he can be prosecuted for official acts.

Trump has been accused of several crimes, including criminal solicitation to commit election fraud in Georgia, and attempting to "deprive or defraud" people of a "fair and impartially conducted election process." Legal experts have argued that Trump may have violated federal and state laws in his attempts to overturn the 2020 election results.

Despite these accusations, it is unclear whether Trump will face prosecution for any of these crimes. Some legal experts have expressed doubt that federal charges will be brought against him, and it is possible that he could avoid liability by pardoning himself, although it is unclear whether a president can legally issue a self-pardon.

Trump's attempts to overturn the 2020 election result

After losing the 2020 election to Joe Biden, then-incumbent president Donald Trump pursued an unprecedented effort to overturn the election result. Trump and his allies used the "big lie" propaganda technique to promote false claims that the election was stolen by means of rigged voting machines, electoral fraud, and an international communist conspiracy.

Trump pressed Department of Justice leaders to challenge the results and publicly state that the election was corrupt. However, the attorney general, director of National Intelligence, and director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, as well as some Trump campaign staff, dismissed these claims. State and federal judges, election officials, and state governors also determined the claims were baseless.

Trump's legal team filed 63 lawsuits to try to overturn the election results, but none were successful. He also considered ways to remain in power, including military intervention, seizing voting machines, and another appeal to the Supreme Court.

Trump's attempts to overturn the election culminated in the January 6 Capitol attack by his supporters in an attempted self-coup d'état. In June 2022, the House Select Committee on the January 6 Attack said it had enough evidence to recommend that the Department of Justice indict Trump, and on August 1, 2023, he was indicted by a grand jury on four charges, including conspiracy to defraud the United States and conspiracy against rights. He pleaded not guilty to all charges.

Trump continues to insist that the election was stolen, and as late as 2022, his supporters continued their attempts to overturn the election, pushing for state legislature resolutions and new lawsuits.

Trump's handling of classified documents

During his time in office, Donald Trump's handling of classified information and his attitude towards it worried US federal intelligence officials. They were also alarmed by his socialising with guests during his frequent trips to Mar-a-Lago, viewing the practice as a security risk.

Trump's behaviour led to mistrust in intelligence and law enforcement agencies. In 2021, he reportedly told close associates that he regarded some presidential documents, such as his correspondence with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, to be his personal property.

Trump illegally and regularly shredded "both sensitive and mundane" papers while at the White House, at Mar-a-Lago, and on Air Force One, despite repeated admonishments from his staff. His aides developed special practices and protocols early in his presidency to retrieve the piles of torn paper and attempt to tape documents back together.

In May 2021, the National Archives became aware of missing documents, including letters from Kim Jong-un and a congratulatory letter from former President Barack Obama. In January 2022, the National Archives began a process to retrieve 15 boxes that were taken from the White House to Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate at the end of his term. Among the documents were found to be classified information.

The National Archives notified the Justice Department, and the House Committee on Oversight and Reform began an investigation into the documents. The Justice Department instructed the National Archives not to share any more details about the documents, implying that the FBI was beginning a separate investigation. Of the documents retrieved, archivists and federal agents determined that 184 unique documents had classification markings, with 25 marked "top secret".

In May 2022, the Justice Department subpoenaed the National Archives in an attempt to obtain the documents and had interviewed several White House officials who were present in the days leading up to Trump's departure. The Justice Department also subpoenaed Trump in May 2022 to return all documents with classification markings.

On August 8, 2022, the FBI executed a search warrant on Mar-a-Lago. Thousands of government documents were seized, some with the highest possible classification markings and supposed to be read exclusively in secure government facilities.

Trump was indicted on 37 counts related to the documents in June 2023. He pleaded not guilty to all charges. However, in July 2024, Judge Aileen Cannon annulled the entire procedure on the grounds that the appointment of special prosecutor Jack Smith was illegal.

Trump's hush-money case

In January 2025, Donald Trump was sentenced to "unconditional discharge" in his New York criminal hush-money case, avoiding jail time, fines, or probation. The sentence came just 10 days before his inauguration for a second term as US President.

Trump was found guilty of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in connection with a $130,000 hush-money payment made by his then-personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, to adult film star Stormy Daniels. The payment was made shortly before the 2016 presidential election, in which Trump defeated Democrat Hillary Clinton. Daniels was paid for her silence about claims she had sex with Trump a decade earlier, which he denied.

After he was elected, Trump reimbursed Cohen in instalments, falsely recording them as legal expenses. Each of Trump's 34 guilty verdicts correlates to a false document related to the cover-up.

Trump's sentencing marked the first criminal conviction of a US president. He pleaded not guilty and vowed to appeal, claiming the case was politically motivated.

Manhattan Judge Juan Merchan said he was imposing a sentence sparing Trump any punishment because the US Constitution shields presidents from criminal prosecution. However, he noted that the protections afforded to the office "do not reduce the seriousness of a crime or justify its commission in any way." Merchan added that an unconditional discharge was the only lawful sentence he could deliver without encroaching on the office of the presidency.

Trump's lawyers had argued that he was immune from criminal prosecution, but courts rejected this claim as it related to the hush-money case because he was not yet president when the initial conduct occurred.

The hush-money case was one of four criminal cases against Trump, including two that centred on his attempts to overturn the 2020 election results and one involving alleged mishandling of classified documents. The other cases were dropped or delayed, but the hush-money trial concluded with Trump's conviction and sentencing.

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