US President-elect Donald Trump is facing sentencing for covering up hush money payments to a porn star.
The court is set to convict Trump on Friday, making him the first felon to hold the office of President in the White House.
The sentencing will take place in a Manhattan courtroom, but Trump is expected to attend virtually.
Although the incoming president will not serve jail time, the 34 counts of falsifying business records, for which he was convicted in May 2024, carry potential prison sentences. However, it is anticipated that he will receive the mildest criminal sanction available: an unconditional discharge, a relatively uncommon measure.
During the trial, Trump was compelled to watch as a series of witnesses testified that he had fraudulently covered up illicit payments of up to $130,000 to porn star Stormy Daniels to prevent her from disclosing their affair ahead of the 2016 presidential election, which he ultimately won.
“This Court lacks jurisdiction over a state court’s management of an ongoing criminal trial when the defendant has not exhausted his state-law remedies,” the prosecution told the Supreme Court on Thursday.
Trump’s lawyers contended that the immunity from prosecution granted to a US president should be extended to a president-elect. However, New York State Associate Justice Ellen Gesmer dismissed these arguments.
Trump was certified as the winner of the 2024 presidential election on Monday, four years after his supporters rioted at the US Capitol in an attempt to overturn his 2020 defeat.
President Joe Biden, in a wide-ranging interview with US Today, said he thinks he would have defeated Donald Trump and won re-election in November. He however added that he was unsure if he would have had the stamina for another four-year term.