14-1-2025 (WASHINGTON) The U.S. Justice Department has unveiled his comprehensive report detailing former President Donald Trump’s alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election results. The release comes in the wake of Trump’s November electoral triumph, which effectively halted the prosecution’s momentum.
The eagerly anticipated document examines the grounds for Smith’s four-count indictment against Trump, which alleged a coordinated scheme to interfere with vote certification following his defeat to Joe Biden in 2020. However, the section concerning Trump’s handling of classified documents post-presidency remains sealed, as legal proceedings continue against two Trump associates.
Smith’s departure from the Justice Department last week coincided with the dismissal of both cases against the president-elect, adhering to long-established departmental protocol preventing the prosecution of sitting presidents. Neither case progressed to trial stage.
Throughout the investigations, Trump maintained his innocence and launched scathing attacks on Smith, whom he frequently branded as “deranged”. The former president consistently characterised the prosecutions as politically motivated manoeuvres designed to undermine his campaign and political base.
In recent days, Trump and two former co-defendants attempted to block the report’s publication ahead of his January 20th return to office. Their efforts to prevent its release were ultimately unsuccessful in court, though Judge Aileen Cannon has temporarily suspended plans allowing senior congressional leaders private access to the classified documents portion.
The public section of the report may offer limited new insights, as prosecutors had previously outlined their case extensively in court filings. Moreover, a congressional committee had already published a comprehensive 700-page report in 2022 examining Trump’s post-election conduct.
Both investigations highlighted Trump’s promotion of unfounded voter fraud claims and his pressure campaign on state officials to withhold vote certification. They also detailed his alleged scheme to deploy fraudulent electors in Biden-won states to disrupt congressional certification of the results.
These actions culminated in the January 6th, 2021 Capitol riot, where Trump supporters violently breached Congress in an unsuccessful bid to prevent Biden’s victory certification.
The prosecution faced significant legal challenges even before Trump’s recent election victory. The case stalled for months as Trump argued for presidential immunity from prosecution, an argument that found considerable support from the Supreme Court’s conservative majority, which ultimately granted former presidents broad protection from criminal charges.
