After former President Donald Trump was found guilty on all counts Thursday in connection with a hush money payment. Many are now asking if he can still run for president. Velena Jones reports.
The verdict was reached in former president Donald Trump's hush money trial on Thursday. He was found guilty on all 34 felony counts and now becomes the first president ever convicted of a felony.
Now, there are huge questions for constitutional law scholars. Can Trump still run for president? Can he hold office? And if he is elected, would it defer any prison sentence?
“This is this is one of those historic moments. That's a first time ever moment and we're just starting to think about well, what are all the consequences and what should we do in the future?” said UC Law San Francisco professor Rory Little.
A felony conviction can prevent Trump from buying guns, vote in many states and even joining the military. But as Little explained, the verdict won’t prevent Trump's run for president.
“Legally, there's no bar on him holding office. The constitution sets very minimal requirement. You just got to be over 35, and a natural born citizen,” he said.
Little added there are no rules preventing the presumptive Republican nominee from once again holding office for two reasons, one is this situation has never happened before.
“We're just not prepared for it. That's one answer,” he said. “I think the other answer and the deeper answer, the legal answer is this is a democracy and the theory of the constitution, the theory of the democracy is that the people get to choose who is their president."
Some have asked if the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution would prevent a run. But a recent Supreme Court ruling determined that amendment does not make Trump ineligible to appear on a ballot.
However, Little said that doesn’t mean lawyers and some states won’t try to find a way around that ruling.
Get a weekly recap of the latest San Francisco Bay Area housing news. Sign up for NBC Bay Area’s Housing Deconstructed newsletter.
“The states do not have the authority to regulate a federal election. If you extrapolate from that ruling you might say, nothing could keep him off the ballot for November of 2024. But as I say, I think lawyers are paid to be creative, paid to push the law,” he said.
A guilty verdict for a former president is now likely to set precedent over who can and cannot run in all future elections.
Assuming the conviction isn't overturned at some point, Little said people can expect to see both Republican and Democratic lawmakers propose legislation to address possible convictions and consequences for future nominees.
