Donald Trump could be charged with election interference under a law enacted shortly after the Civil War that was designed to stop Southern white people from carrying out acts of terrorism to prevent black people from voting.
Trump was told on July 16 that he may face charges over his actions surrounding the 2020 ballot.
Jack Smith, the special counsel investigating Trump’s post-election conduct, sent Trump’s lawyers a “target letter,” explaining that investigators have evidence tying him to crimes and that he could face charges.
On Wednesday, The New York Times reported that the letter outlined three possible charges.
Two of the charges – conspiracy to defraud the government and obstruction of official proceedings – were widely expected. But the third was more of a surprise and dates back more than a century.
Donald Trump arrives at a rally in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, on Tuesday as his legal troubles continue to mount
Jack Smith has been investigating Trump’s attempts to disrupt the 2020 election, telling Trump’s lawyers on July 16 that he was a possible target of criminal charges.
Hundreds of people line up to vote in Marietta, Georgia, on October 12, 2020, during the early voting
Under the law, it is a crime for people to “conspire to injure, oppress, threaten, or intimidate any person” in the “free exercise or enjoyment of any right or privilege conferred upon him by the Constitution or laws of the United States.”
The charges have been brought in several cases over the past century, in cases of alleged ballot tampering by casting false votes or falsely tallying votes after the election was over.
The law, known officially as Section 241 of Title 18, was enacted in 1950 when a judge in the Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit ruled on a ballot box stuffing case.
Judge Charles C. Simons wrote that having a reasonable number of votes “is a right of every eligible voter, and to the extent that the importance of his vote is negated in whole or in part, he is prejudiced in the free exercise of any right or privilege conferred upon him by the laws and Constitution of the United States.”
In a 1974 Supreme Court opinion, Justice Thurgood Marshall cited Simons, adding that every voter “has the right under the Constitution to have their vote counted fairly, without it being distorted by ballots cast fraudulently.”
The use of Section 241 could suggest that Trump could be accused of depriving voters in Georgia of a fair count when he asked Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to “find” votes for him.
Smith has not announced any official charges against Trump in connection with the Georgia ballot case. But Trump has posted that he is a target in the investigation.
People cast their votes during early voting at the State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia, on October 12, 2020. Footage of the vote count has been turned over to Smith’s team
Trump takes the stage at the Point Action Conference in Florida on July 15, where he faces felony charges related to the handling of classified documents
Trump was recorded by Raffensperger during the call, and Raffensperger is working with Smith’s team, including by handing over surveillance camera footage from the Georgia polling stations.
“It seems that at least under 241 there is a right to a fair vote count,” said Norman Eisen, who worked for the House Judiciary Committee during Trump’s first impeachment.
said Eisen The New York Times“Submission of an alternate election certificate to Congress (as opposed to casting false votes or miscounting) is a new scenario, but it appears as if it would violate this right.”
Analysts have said they expect Smith to announce charges against Trump over the election fraud case as early as next week.
Smith has already sued Trump in a separate, unrelated case for mishandling classified documents stored at Mar-a-Lago.
Smith’s team and Trump’s lawyers are currently arguing over when that trial should go ahead: Smith’s team is pushing for the trial to begin before Christmas, but Trump’s team wants it postponed indefinitely, citing its complexity and classified documents.
The federal judge overseeing the Florida documents case indicated she could delay the trial until 2024 after hearing from the former president’s attorneys that they needed more time to prepare for such complex court proceedings.
Judge Aileen Cannon told Trump’s team at a hearing on Tuesday to prepare a concrete timeline for her, but added that she understood they needed more time to review evidence.
She also questioned prosecutors why they were pushing for a speedy trial.
She ended the hearing at the federal courthouse in Fort Pierce, Florida, by saying she would file a written warrant at a later date.
In an interview with Sean Hannity on Fox News, the former president lashed out at Smith.
“This man is a deranged prosecutor who has had massive failures all over,” Trump said. “He’s that nasty, horrible human being.
“They’re coming after me.”