Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, who is handling the high-profile election interference case in Georgia against former President Trump, is also at risk of disqualification, but is attracting Democratic and Republican challengers for re-election this fall.
Former Fulton prosecutor and Atlanta city attorney Christian Wise Smith, who lost the 2020 race to Willis, announced on X Friday that he is “officially eligible” to run for the office again.
Attorney Courtney Kramer, who reportedly worked as a litigation consultant for President Trump’s legal team, has also begun running for the position as a Republican, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. According to the newspaper, Mr. Kramer described Mr. Willis as turning the district attorney’s office into a “clown show.”
“The moment she decided to indict President Trump and the other 19 defendants was the moment I said enough is enough,” Cramer said, according to the newspaper. “The resources used in that investigation could have been used for many other things and would have been more beneficial to the residents of Fulton County.”
Judge in Trump’s Georgia case faces election challenge from civil rights lawyers
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis watches a hearing in the State of Georgia v. Donald John Trump case at the Fulton County Courthouse on March 1, 2024 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Alex Slitspool/Getty Images)
Mr. Willis faces allegations that he should be disbarred from the case against Mr. Trump because his relationship with special counsel Nathan Wade benefited him financially.
Willis and Wade have both denied the allegations, claiming their relationship began after Wade was hired in 2021. In his court testimony, Willis insisted that he would repay Wade his share of the trip together in cash. There were no receipts for these redemptions, and one witness claimed that their relationship began as early as 2019.
Fulton County Ethics Commission won’t accept complaints against Fani Willis
Fulton County, Georgia District Attorney Fani Willis and Special Prosecutor Nathan Wade. (Getty Images)
In the final 2020 primary for the Fulton County District Attorney position, Wise-Smith ran as a Democrat on a platform of not seeking the death penalty, ending cash bail and decriminalizing drug possession. It received approximately 23% of the votes. According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
When asked about his challenger earlier this week, Willis told the newspaper: “This is a democracy that we live in, so people have the right to run for office.
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis speaks during a press conference at the Fulton County Government Center in Atlanta in August 2023. Donald Trump and several allies have been indicted in Georgia over their efforts to overturn his loss in the state’s 2020 election. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)
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“But they have to prepare for battle,” she added. “They should know that my heart is still in this work, and my heart will always be in this work.”
Fox News’ Brianna Herlihy contributed to this report.
