Pete Skandalakis, the executive director of Georgia's prosecuting attorneys' council, has appointed himself to take over the 2020 election interference case against Donald Trump after Fani Willis was removed.
The case, the only remaining criminal prosecution of Trump, was revived after the Georgia supreme court disqualified Willis due to a conflict of interest arising from her romantic relationship with special prosecutor Nathan Wade.
Skandalakis, a Republican, said he took the step after failing to secure another prosecutor. The case involves a racketeering indictment against Trump and 18 others for allegedly conspiring to overturn his narrow 2020 loss to Joe Biden in Georgia.
Four defendants have pleaded guilty; Trump and the others have pleaded not guilty. Trump is protected from state-level prosecutions while president. Judge Scott McAfee had set a 14 November deadline to find a new prosecutor to avoid dismissal.
Skandalakis noted the public interest in the outcome and said he would conduct a comprehensive review. McAfee has scheduled a status conference for 1 December and dismissed three counts involving forgery and filing false documents in federal court.
