Trump charged in US special counsel probe in efforts to overturn 2020 election

WASHINGTON, (Reuters): Donald Trump on Tuesday (August 1) was hit with criminal charges for a third time in four months – this time arising from efforts to overturn his 2020 US election defeat – as he campaigns to regain the presidency next year.

The charges stem from Special Counsel Jack Smith’s investigation into allegations Trump – the front-runner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination – sought to reverse his loss to Democratic rival Joe Biden.

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Officials have testified that Trump pressured them based on false claims of widespread voting fraud. His supporters attacked the US Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in a bid to stop Congress from certifying Biden’s victory.

Trump on July 18 said he had received a letter from Smith telling him that he was a target of the Jan. 6 grand jury investigation in Washington.

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Donald Trump already had become the first former US president to face criminal charges. He has sought to portray the prosecutions as part of a politically motivated witch hunt. These represent a second round of federal charges by Smith, who was appointed a special counsel in November by US Attorney General Merrick Garland.