Trump judge in Georgia says district attorney Fani Willis can stay on election case, deputy prosecutor steps down
- Special Counsel Nathan Wade resigned from the case following a judge’s order that either he or Willis move aside
- Trump and his co-defendants had been seeking to have Willis removed following revelations she had been in a romantic relationship with Wade
The Georgia judge overseeing Donald Trump’s trial on charges of trying to overturn his election defeat said on Friday that lead prosecutor Fani Willis can remain on the case, but a deputy with whom she had a personal relationship stepped down in keeping with the judge’s order.
Nathan Wade, the special counsel hired for the case, resigned on Friday in an open letter to Willis.
Judge Scott McAfee’s ruling was a blow to the Republican former US president, who seeks to unseat Democratic President Joe Biden in a November 5 election. Trump has sought to delay trials in the four criminal cases he faces until after the election.
Trump is accused in the Georgia case of illegally pressuring state officials to overturn his loss to Biden there in the 2020 presidential election.
McAfee’s decision caps a tumultuous two months for Willis, the Fulton County district attorney whose romantic relationship with Wade, the special prosecutor she appointed to lead the case, was disclosed in a January court filing by a Trump co-defendant.