Trump holds a significant lead in GOP primary race despite indictment
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A poll by Reuters and Ipos shows that Donald Trump has a wide lead in the upcoming GOP primaries, as 43% of poll takers identified him as their preferential candidate.
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Former US President Donald Trump holds MAGA caps during a rally for Georgia Republican candidates in Columbus, Georgia, US, June 10, 2023 (AP)
Despite facing federal criminal charges, former President Donald Trump maintains a significant advantage in the race for the Republican presidential nomination in the upcoming 2024 election, a recent survey conducted by Reuters and Ipsos shows.
According to the poll, 43% of Republicans who participated identified Trump as their preferred candidate in the party's primaries, while Florida Governor Ron DeSantis received 22% support, making him the closest contender.
Furthermore, the survey revealed that 81% of Republicans in the United States view the charges against Trump as being politically motivated, suggesting a strong partisan divide on the issue.
Recently, Trump was accused of committing 37 felony offenses including conspiracy to obstruct justice and deliberate retention of national security material.
He allegedly withheld a document during a federal investigation, as he was also charged with one count of conspiracy to obstruct justice, 31 counts of intentional retention of national security information, two distinct counts of making false statements, and other connected offenses.
According to the indictment, he could get a term of up to 20 years in jail for several crimes.
Trump has attacked prosecutors for not pursuing Joe Biden, the current US President, for his alleged improper handling of secret documents in the same manner. Biden has denied the claims of misconduct.
On Monday he promised voters that a special prosecutor would be hired by him in order to investigate the current president and his family, assuming he wins the 2024 presidential elections.
Writing with his trademark all caps on social media, Trump announced that he would "APPOINT A REAL SPECIAL ‘PROSECUTOR’ TO GO AFTER THE MOST CORRUPT PRESIDENT IN THE HISTORY OF THE USA, JOE BIDEN, THE ENTIRE BIDEN CRIME FAMILY, & ALL OTHERS INVOLVED WITH THE DESTRUCTION OF OUR ELECTIONS, BORDERS, & COUNTRY ITSELF!"
Trump confirmed earlier on Thursday that he had been indicted over his handling of classified documents after leaving office, in another legal threat to his bid for a second White House term.
"The corrupt Biden Administration has informed my attorneys that I have been Indicted, seemingly over the Boxes Hoax," Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform, though there was no immediate confirmation from the Justice Department regarding Trump's assertion.
Trump was already the first former or sitting president to be charged with a crime, as he was charged over election-eve hush money payments to an adult star who said she had an affair with him.
![In a 2021 interview with Frontline by former US special representative James Jeffrey, he says he had "engaged with [HTS] via backchannels while serving in President Trump’s State Department. (Al Mayadeen English; Illustrated by Batoul Chamas)](https://alpha-en-media.almayadeen.net/media/image/2024/12/21/b4a69f2e-8682-43e4-9d37-49482b304ab3/3.png?v=2&format=webp "In a 2021 interview with Frontline by former US special representative James Jeffrey, he says he had \"engaged with [HTS] via backchannels while serving in President Trump’s State Department. (Al Mayadeen English; Illustrated by Batoul Chamas)")
