Georgia on Don’s mind
State may deliver nomination, or conviction … or both
ATLANTA: Donald Trump can mathematically lock up the Republican nomination in the latest round of primary voting, which includes the key swing state of Georgia where he faces racketeering charges over an alleged conspiracy to steal the last election.
Mr Trump steamrolled his sole remaining rival, Nikki Haley, in last week’s 15-state Super Tuesday voting, moving to within 140 delegates of the total needed to win the nomination to face President Joe Biden in November’s election.
Georgia – along with contests in Hawaii, Washington and Mississippi also on Wednesday
(Australian time) – offer a combined 161 delegates, and with Ms Haley quitting the race last week, the former president is unopposed.
Georgia was long reliably Republican but has become more competitive and is now seen as crucial to any candidate’s White House ambitions.
The state has been roiled by the recent murder of a nursing student, allegedly by an undocumented migrant, and Mr Trump pressed his case at a weekend rally in Georgia that Mr Biden has lost control of immigration.
“Laken Riley would be alive today if Joe Biden had not wilfully and maliciously eviscerated the borders of the United States,” he said.
The contests will renew scrutiny of Mr Trump’s effort to overturn the 2020 election in Georgia – a state he lost to Mr Biden by fewer than 12,000 votes – as he eyes a third run for the White House.
Mr Trump was arrested in Atlanta, Georgia, last August on racketeering and conspiracy charges, given the inmate number PO1135809 by the Fulton County Jail and released on a $US200,000 bond.
Accused of colluding with multiple other defendants to overturn the 2020 election result in the southern state, the 77-year-old had his mug shot taken during the booking process – a first for any serving or former US president.
The first Republican presidential candidate to lose Georgia in almost three decades,
Mr Trump claimed foul play but several recounts and numerous lawsuits failed to turn up any evidence of significant voter fraud anywhere.
The former president, who denies all wrongdoing, is being prosecuted under Georgia’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organisations statute, which is usually used to nail down mob figures.
Georgia prosecutors initially proposed that the case begin this month, but it has been delayed, in part by accusations that District Attorney Fani Willis created a conflict of interest via a relationship with a lawyer.