Former President Donald Trump was found guilty on all 34 counts in the hush money trial and could still be elected president – even if he was convicted – experts told ABC News.
But there are practical reasons that could be a challenge, experts told ABC News after Trump was indicted by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg last April.
Trump maintained his innocence after the verdict was handed down on Thursday, “This is a disgrace,” Trump told reporters. “This is a rigged court by corrupt conflicted judges.
Sentencing is scheduled for July 11.
A constitutional expert also told ABC News that a previous Supreme Court decision stated that Congress cannot add qualifications to the office of president. Additionally, states cannot prohibit accused or convicted felons from running for federal office.
The US Constitution does not list the absence of a criminal record as a qualification for the presidency. It says only that a natural-born citizen who is at least 35 years old and has been a US resident for 14 years can be president.
Republican presidential candidate and former President Donald Trump reacts as the verdict is read in a criminal trial on charges he falsified business records to hide money he paid to silence porn star Stormy Daniels in 2016, in Manhattan state court in New York, May 30, 2024. , in this courtroom sketch.
Jane Rosenberg / Reuters
“Some people are surprised to learn that there is no constitutional line on criminals running for president, but there is no such ban,” said Kate Shaw, an ABC News legal analyst and professor at the University of Pennsylvania School of Law.
He also said he would still run even if impeached, in an interview with radio host John Fredericks, Trump was asked if he believed his White House campaign would end.
“Not all, there is nothing in the Constitution that can say that it can and not all,” he said.
The former president struck a similar tone last year at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) when he told a crowd that he would “absolutely” remain president even if he were to face criminal charges.
No charges were brought against him at the time.
“Because of the 22nd Amendment, that individual cannot be president twice before,” Shaw said. “But there is nothing in the Constitution that disqualifies a person who has been convicted for acting or being president.”
Shaw said that while incarceration “might make campaigning difficult if not impossible,” the obstacles would be “a practical issue, not a legal issue.”
James Sampler, a professor of constitutional law at Hofstra University, told ABC News that the Constitution specifies minimum requirements, but leaves the rest up to voters.
“It is up to the discretion of the people to determine whether an individual is unfit for office,” Sampler said. “So the most fundamental obstacle that President Trump faces in seeking office in 2024 is the obstacle that anyone has, but he has a different and more obvious way – that of proving to voters that the individual deserves to be in office.”
If Trump were to be prevented by law from traveling out of the country, Sampler said, that would impose practical limits on his ability to travel within the country and campaign — but would not prohibit him from running.
Sampler also points to the irony of the electoral system, where many states bar convicted felons from voting.
“It’s a sad day for a country that really values ​​democratic participation and equality, that individuals convicted of crimes can be barred from participating even as voters in our democracy, but a president convicted of crimes is still allowed,” said Jessica Levinson, a professor of electoral law at Loyola Law School, agreed.
“What’s interesting about the qualifications is like you have to be born here, you have to live here for a while… it’s all kind of getting the idea that you want to be loyal to our country,” Levinson said. “But you can be convicted of a crime against our country, and still be president.”
Trump has denied any wrongdoing in each of the investigations, calling them a partisan witch hunt intended to derail his 2024 presidential bid.
