Following Donald Trump being found guilty of all 34 counts in his hush-money trial, the Biden-Harris campaign has responded.
The 12-person New York jury announced its decision on Thursday (May 30), with Judge Juan Merchan scheduling the 77-year-old former president's sentencing for July 11.
Former President Donald Trump faced charges of business fraud linked to hush-money payments made to former adult star Stormy Daniels.
The payments, totaling $130,000 (£104,500), were allegedly orchestrated by Trump's former lawyer, Michael Cohen, to secure Daniels' silence about her alleged sexual encounter with Trump prior to the 2016 election.
Following the verdict - which came after a six-week trial - the Biden-Harris campaign has issued a statement.
It reads: "Donald Trump has always mistakenly believed he would never face consequences for breaking the law for his own personal gain. But today’s verdict does not change the fact that the American people face a simple reality."
The statement stressed that "no one is above the law", before adding: "There is still only one way to keep Donald Trump out of the Oval Office: at the ballot box. Convicted felon or not, Trump will be the Republican nominee for president.
"The threat Trump poses to our democracy has never been greater. He is running an increasingly unhinged campaign of revenge and retribution, pledging to be a dictator ‘on day one’ and calling for our Constitution to be ‘terminated’ so he can regain and keep power
"A second Trump term means chaos, ripping away Americans’ freedoms and fomenting political violence – and the American people will reject it this November."
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Following the verdict, Trump has vehemently slammed the ruling, calling it a "disgrace".
The Guardian reports that, as Trump exited the courtroom, he addressed the cameras, denouncing the trial as "rigged" and "disgraceful".
He stressed that the "real verdict is going to be November 5 by the people", referring to the upcoming presidential election.
Trump asserted that he is "very innocent, adding: "They know what happened here, and everybody knows what happened here."
The former POTUS stressed that he is “fighting for our country” and “fighting for our constitution".
He then accused the Biden administration of orchestrating a "rigged" system to target political opponents, adding that they are trying to “wound or hurt a political opponent”.
"This is long from over," he declared before departing the scene.
Trump faced a total of 34 counts of fraud and pleaded not guilty to all charges. He is the first president in US history to be criminally tried.
