Can Trump still run for president after being indicted? Yes, and he can even campaign if convicted.
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- Former President Donald Trump was indicted by a grand jury in New York.
- The development raised questions about how the indictment will impact his 2024 presidential campaign.
- A presidential candidate can still run for office despite being indicted — or even convicted — of a crime.
Former President Donald Trump has been indicted by a grand jury in New York, triggering a wave of questions about the indictment's potential implications on his 2024 presidential campaign, and whether Trump could go on to serve as president again after being formally accused of a felony crime.
A presidential candidate can, indeed, still run for office despite being indicted for a crime, according to the US Constitution.
Article II of the constitution lays out the requirements for any presidential candidate: They must be at least 35 years of age, they must have resided in the US for at least 14 years, and they must be a natural-born US citizen. The constitution does not bar presidential candidates who have been charged or convicted of crimes.
In fact, the constitution does not even disqualify presidential candidates who are incarcerated, legal experts previously told Insider. Two presidential candidates — Eugene Debs in 1920 and Lyndon LaRouche in 1992 — ran for the Oval Office from behind bars, though neither of them won. Debs had been serving time in a federal prison for violating the Espionage Act, and LaRouche had been convicted of committing mail fraud and campaign fraud conspiracy.
The Manhattan District Attorney's Office has been investigating Trump's alleged role in a hush-money scheme during the 2016 election to silence the adult film actress Stormy Daniels, who has alleged having an affair with Trump. The grand jury's decision to indict Trump makes him the first former president in US history to be indicted on a felony charge. Trump has denied the affair and any wrongdoing.
Though the constitution is clear that no criminal charges or convictions can disqualify a person from running for president, American public opinion is much more nuanced.
A Quinnipiac University national poll released Wednesday found that 57% of respondents believed criminal charges should disqualify Trump from office. Respondents' political leanings had an impact on their answers; 75% of Republicans believed the charges should not disqualify Trump, while 88% of Democrats believed the opposite. Of the independents polled, 55% of them believed the charges should disqualify him.