• Winning the 2024 election may help Donald Trump in his four criminal cases.
• Trump has vowed to fire the special prosecutor who brought two federal charges against him.
• Being president-elect could also help him delay his cases in Georgia and New York.

Donald TrumpIran’s presidential victory is also a victory as it seeks to resolve its problems. four indictments.

His victory could largely free Trump of his criminal cases for the foreseeable future.experts told Business Insider.

“Politics aside, legal issues are important for Trump” November 5 electionformer federal prosecutor Neama Rahmani predicted early Tuesday.

Here’s what will happen with Trump’s four criminal cases — two federal and two state — moving forward.

The affair of silence in New York

Trump, the first American president convicted of a crimehas a November 26 Sentencing in Manhattan date on his calendar.

He faces up to four years in prison for his May conviction on 34 counts of falsifying business records to conceal his secret $130,000 payment to the adult film actor. Stormy Daniels.

It is possible that the sentencing date may be delayed. Trump has vowed to challenge his indictment and conviction in New York’s appeals courts. He will likely argue that the evidence in this case includes acts that took place while he was carrying out his official role as president – ​​evidence that would be prohibited under the landmark US July law. Presidential immunity at the Supreme Court decision.

Once convicted, experts say further appeals could maintain a prison sentence waiting for years – although a a prison sentence is very unlikelya quartet of former New York judges previously told BI.

Winning the presidency could now set things back even further, as Trump could argue that he is too busy running the country to take care of his personal legal issues.

Before the election results, Michael Dorf, a professor at Cornell Law School, predicted that if Trump won, he would quickly file court papers to delay sentencing until he was no longer president.

Rahmani, president and co-founder of West Coast Trial Lawyers, said he didn’t think Trump would face prison time “regardless of the outcome of the election.”

“Trump’s victory makes the task logistically impossible and gives certainty that he will have no delay,” Rahmani said.

Trump’s federal affairs

Trump was indicted on two federal charges, both brought by a special counsel Jack Smithwho would be eligible for presidential pardon, even though a self-pardon has never been attempted.

Once president, Trump could ask his attorney general to fire Smith. He could also ask the courts to stop federal prosecutions because there is a longstanding Justice Department policy that a sitting president cannot be prosecuted while in office or attempt to pardon himself, Dorf said.

Trump said last month during a conservative radio interview that if elected, he would fire Smith “in two seconds.”

Justice Department regulations state that a special counsel can only be fired for good cause, but Trump could ask his attorney general to overturn those regulations, Dorf said.

Firing Smith “is basically his right as president, although I would expect Smith to resign before that, period,” said Michel Paradis, a lawyer who teaches national security and constitutional law at Columbia Law School.

“The key thing to watch would be what Jack Smith does between Election Day and Jan. 20 to potentially protect these lawsuits from interference,” Paradis said.

“There’s not much he can do to make them foolproof since ultimately the president controls the Justice Department,” Paradis added.

Paradis said that before Trump is sworn in, Smith could attempt to suspend both proceedings, on the grounds that sitting presidents cannot be prosecuted while in office.

Trump has pleaded not guilty to both federal indictments.

Asked for comment, Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung told BI: “Kamala Harris and Joe Biden’s lying witch hunts against President Trump have imploded just like their failed campaign, and should all be rejected in light of the historic judgment of the Supreme Court. decision on immunity and other vital case law.

A DOJ spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The affair of interference in federal elections

Even if Trump had lost, Smith’s lawsuit against Trump over accusations that he attempted to cancel the 2020 elections would not necessarily have rushed at full speed.

Citizen Trump could have continued to challenge the election interference case by invoking presidential immunitysay the experts.

In July, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a landmark opinion that grants presidents broad protection from prosecution for official acts while in office. The opinion also prohibits the use of official evidence in any prosecution of a former president, even for charges unrelated to official actions.

In August, Smith obtained a revised indictment which narrowed the charges against Trump to cover up acts he committed as a private citizen seeking office.

The Federal Classified Documents Affair

Another federal charge against Trump, alleging he failed to return classified government documents he took from the White House, was fired in July by Trump-appointed U.S. district judge Canon Aileenwho said Smith’s nomination violated the Constitution.

The dismissal, which argues Congress should have approved Smith’s appointment, is now the subject of Smith’s appeal to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals. Smith’s appeal revolves around what he calls “the long tradition of appointing special counsels by attorneys general.”

The Georgia Election Interference Case

THE Georgia election interference case against Trump and 18 of his associates remains in a legal vacuumthrough the defendants’ efforts to obtain the Fulton County Prosecutor’s Office, Fani Willisdisqualified from the case.

In May, a Georgia appeals court agreed to review Trump’s attempt to remove Willis from the case.

Lawyers for Trump and his co-defendants argued that Willis had a conflict of interest in the matter because she took unfair advantage of a romantic relationship with Nathan Wadethe Atlanta lawyer she hired as special prosecutor.

After an evidentiary hearing earlier this year, a judge ruled that Willis and his office could stay on the case as long as Wade stepped down, and Wade announced his resignation hours later.

Trump has pleaded not guilty to the Georgia indictment.

Had Trump lost the election, the case could have moved forward, although Trump likely would have moved to have it dismissed based on the Supreme Court’s presidential immunity ruling.

As the winner of the election, however, he can file documents with the Georgia court “saying you have to suspend this while I’m president because it’s just not consistent with federal supremacy for a state to pursue a sitting president. Dorf, a constitutional law expert, told BI on Tuesday.

“He doesn’t control the prosecutors, so you can’t fire them, and he can’t pardon himself because these are state crimes, so his only option in state cases is to suspend them,” he said. Dorf said.

November 6, 2026: This story was updated after the election was called for Donald Trump.