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A Georgia appeals court on Wednesday froze all proceedings in the election interference case against former president Donald Trump and his co-defendants in the state.
Trump, 77, is accused in Georgia of participating in a criminal conspiracy to overturn the 2020 election results, where Democrat Joe Biden won by approximately 12,000 votes.
In March, the judge presiding over the case rejected an attempt by Trump and several co-defendants to disqualify District Attorney Fani Willis, following revelations of her romantic relationship with the man she hired as a special prosecutor.
Trump and his co-defendants appealed Judge Scott McAfee’s ruling, and the Georgia Court of Appeals announced this week that it would hear the appeal on October 4.
On Wednesday, the appellate court ordered a suspension of all proceedings pending the outcome of the appeal.
This court order makes it highly unlikely that the case will reach trial before the November presidential election, in which Trump is expected to face Biden again as the Republican candidate.
Evidence in the case includes a recorded phone call in which Trump asked a top Georgia election official to “find” enough votes to reverse the result.
Trump was convicted in a separate criminal case in New York last week of falsifying business records to cover up a hush money payment to a porn star who claimed they had a sexual encounter.
Eighteen co-defendants were indicted in Georgia along with Trump on racketeering and other charges, including his former personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani and ex-White House chief of staff Mark Meadows.
Four of Trump’s original co-defendants, including three former campaign lawyers, have pleaded guilty to lesser charges in deals that spared them prison time.
Trump is also facing federal charges of conspiring to overturn the 2020 election results and for allegedly hoarding top secret documents at his Florida home and refusing to return them.
Neither of these cases is expected to proceed before the election.
Trump’s lawyers have repeatedly sought to delay his various court cases until after the election, when he could potentially have the federal charges against him dropped if he wins.
