Witnesses testify before Georgia grand jury weighing charges against Trump
A former Georgia official and a journalist appeared Monday to testify before a Fulton County grand jury investigating alleged efforts by former President Donald Trump and his allies to overturn the results of the 2020 election in that state.
Former Georgia Lt. Governor Geoff Duncan and journalist George Chidi were called to the courthouse a day earlier than anticipated.
Duncan first acknowledged in an interview on CNN Saturday that he was expected to testify before the grand jury. Duncan, a Republican, later tweeted about it.
"I can confirm that I have been requested to testify before the Fulton County grand jury on Tuesday. I look forward to answering their questions around the 2020 election," Duncan said in the tweet. "Republicans should never let honesty be mistaken for weakness."
After losing the election in 2020, Trump allegedly sought to pressure Duncan and other Georgia officials to convene a special legislative session to overturn the state's results. Duncan and Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, both Republicans, declined that alleged request.
The investigation began shortly after a recorded phone call that occurred between Trump and Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger on Jan. 2, 2021, in which Trump said: "I just want to find 11,780 votes, which is one more than we have."
It has since expanded into a sweeping probe examining a range of efforts to overturn the state's results after Trump's loss, including an alleged scheme to substitute then-President-elect Joe Biden's electoral college votes from the state with a slate of alternate, or "fake," electors.
Chidi also tweeted Saturday that he's been asked to appear before the grand jury Tuesday.
"I've just received a call from District Attorney Fani Willis' office. I have been asked to come to court Tuesday for testimony before the grand jury," Chidi wrote.
Chidi previously wrote in The Intercept about accidentally "barging into a semi-clandestine meeting of Republicans pretending to be Georgia's official electors in December 2020."
Willis' office did not reply to a request for comment.
Willis indicated in letters to Fulton County's chief judge and sheriff that potential indictments in the case could come between July 31 and Aug. 18.
Trump has not been charged in the case an has denied wrongdoing. He has accused Willis, a Democrat, of investigating him for political gain.
Jennifer Little, an attorney for Trump, said in a Feb. 26 interview that Trump intends to fight a potential indictment.
"We absolutely do not believe that our client did anything wrong, and if any indictments were to come down, those are faulty indictments," Little said. "We will absolutely fight anything tooth and nail."
Earlier this month, Trump was indicted by federal special counsel Jack Smith in the Justice Department's own investigation into Trump's alleged efforts to interfere with the results of the 2020 election. He was charged with four counts of conspiracy to defraud the United States; conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding; obstruction of and attempt to obstruct an official proceeding; and conspiracy against rights. He pleaded not guilty to the charges.