Can Donald Trump still run for president after his conviction?

The former American president, who wishes to regain the White House, can still compete for the vote. Nothing in the American Constitution prohibits it.

He returned to his Trump Tower, his fist raised. Donald Trump returned to the campaign as soon as his guilty verdict was pronounced on Thursday, May 30, in New York. The former American president, accused of having faked payments to buy the silence of former pornographic film actress Stormy Daniels, who says she had an extramarital affair with him, was found guilty in this case.

If this decision is historic, it will not prevent the Republican from being a candidate in the presidential election on November 5 against Democrat Joe Biden. And this, even in the event of a prison sentence. Donald Trump, who faces four years in prison for falsifying accounting documents, will receive his sentence on July 11, four days before the convention which will officially induct him as candidate of the Republican Party.

The US Constitution sets very few eligibility requirements for presidents. They must be at least 35 years old, a U.S. citizen by birth, and have lived in the United States for at least fourteen years. There are no restrictions based on morals or criminal record. While some states prohibit felons from running for local office, these laws do not apply to federal office, the statement said. New York Times.

Paradoxically, Donald Trump even regains, with this verdict, his complete freedom of maneuver for his campaign, at least until July 11. If he were imprisoned on that date, he would still be legally eligible for the presidency since the Constitution does not say otherwise. In practice, however, the election of an incarcerated president would create an unprecedented legal crisis, analyzes the New York Times.

The fact remains that in the absence of a criminal record of the defendant, who will be 78 years old at the time of sentencing, it is likely that the judge will instead sentence him to a suspended prison sentence, or to work. of general interest, as well as possibly a fine.

In addition, Donald Trump has one month to notify his intention to appeal, announced Thursday evening by his lawyers, and several months thereafter to do so officially. This appeal will most likely have a suspensive effect on his sentence, particularly if he is sentenced to prison. And a possible appeal trial is unlikely to be held before the presidential election.

If he wins in November, Donald Trump will be able to take office in January 2025. He will, however, be unable to pardon himself or order the abandonment of these proceedings, since he is declared guilty in the context of a New York State proceeding, not a federal one. The Republican candidate, who is due to hold a press conference on Friday, has already declared that the “true verdict” would not be that of the twelve New York jurors, but that of the tens of millions of American voters who will go to the polls on November 5.