Can Trump pardon himself in the legal cases against him now that he’s been reelected?

Celebrating victory with legal cases over his head

The first convicted felon ever to win a presidential election

Trump planning to end federal cases against him

A president can pardon federal convictions but not state level ones

Only the governor of New York could pardon him

A judge could decide to wipe away the conviction

He could delay his Georgia trial until after he leaves office

Celebrating victory with legal cases over his head

While Donald Trump is celebrating his victory in the US 2024 presidential election, he still has three outstanding criminal cases hanging over him and awaits sentencing for the New York hush money case.

The first convicted felon ever to win a presidential election

Trump became the first-ever former president who’s a convicted felon after a New York jury found him guilty of 34 counts on May 31st and now, the first convicted felon ever to win a presidential election.

Guilty of falsifying business records

The jury found that Trump falsified business records to cover up a “hush money” payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels before the 2016 election.

Questions around his legal cases

Nevertheless, it was not an impediment for him to run for office, for the third time, or to be elected president. But questions remain about his ability to pardon himself as president of the United States.

Trump planning to end federal cases against him

According to CNN, Trump has said multiple times he plans to fire special counsel Jack Smith and end the federal cases against him for trying to overturn the 2020 presidential election and mishandling classified documents.

A president can pardon federal convictions but not state level ones

But while a president can pardon themselves for any federal convictions, they can not do so at state level ones, such as Trump’s conviction in New York.

Only the governor of New York could pardon him

The only person who could pardon him would be the governor of New York, who is “exceedingly unlikely to do so as a Democrat”, Steve Duffy, a jury consultant told ‘The Independent’.

Photo: New York governor Kathy Hochul

Light sentence expected

However, a sentence in this case, which will be announced in November 26, could be probation or something even lighter like community service, and if he does get jail or prison time he would likely remain free while he appeals, according to USA Today.

A judge could decide to wipe away the conviction

Charges could even be dismissed, according to a CNN report. Since judge Juan Merchan gave himself a November 12 deadline to decide whether to wipe away the conviction because of the Supreme Court’s decision this summer granting a president some presidential immunity.

Three other cases

Trump, however, is still facing three other cases, two of them federal: one in Washington, DC over attempts to overturn the 2020 election and one in Florida over his alleged mishandling of classified documents.

Another state level case in Georgia

While Trump could arguably pardon himself for the two federal cases, he faces a third state case in Georgia in connection to his efforts to overturn the 2020 results in that state.

He could delay his Georgia trial until after he leaves office

Like in the New York case, he could not pardon himself in the Georgia one. However, under legal precedents, he would be able to delay his Georgia election interference trial until after he leaves office, USA Today reported.

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