Trump Lawyers File Motion to Disqualify DA Fani Willis Over ‘Race Card’ Comments

Attorneys for former President Donald Trump asked a judge overseeing his Georgia election case to disqualify Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis amid allegations that she engaged in an improper relationship with her special prosecutor in the case, while also accusing her of making “racially charged statements.”

The allegations against Ms. Willis, a Democrat, and her appointed special prosecutor, Nathan Wade, come days after a Trump co-defendant in the case, Michael Roman, also sought to disqualify her.

Mr. Roman was the one who made the initial accusations that the pair were involved in an “improper” and “clandestine” relationship, while accusing her of using Fulton County taxpayer funds to pay Mr. Wade for alleged lavish vacations.

“The awesome power to prosecute ought never to be manipulated for personal or political profit,” their motion stated. “In addition to the extensive misconduct alleged in Roman’s motion, the DA did just that in her speech by wrongfully inserting racial animus into this case to publicly denounce and rebuke the defendants, and to defend her personal and political reputation against the numerous and diverse allegations Roman made in his court filing.”

Mr. Roman previously sought to dismiss the case and disqualify Ms. Willis and her office, accusing Ms. Willis of financially benefiting from an alleged romantic relationship with Mr. Wade. Her office has paid him more than $650,000 for his work on the case, records show.

Willis’ Response to Allegations

At a church in Atlanta earlier in January, Ms. Willis alleged that her critics are motivated by a racial bias, without providing evidence and without making any public comments on the allegations that she was involved in a relationship with Mr. Wade.

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“First thing they say, ‘Oh, she gonna to play the race card now,’” she said at a church event. “But no, God, isn’t it them who’s playing the race card when they only question one?”

President Trump’s attorneys wrote that Ms. Wade “inappropriately injected race into the case and stoked racial animus,” adding that she made “provocative and inflammatory extrajudicial racial comments” in a “widely publicized speech at a historical black church in Atlanta, and cloaked in repeated references to God, reinforce and amplify the ‘appearance of impropriety’ in her judgment and prosecutorial conduct.”

President Trump’s filing said Ms. Willis’ comments risk improperly turning potential jurors against the defendants in the case. The former president and more than a dozen individuals are facing racketeering and other charges for what prosecutors say was an attempt to plot to overturn the 2020 election.

The defendants have pleaded not guilty to the charges, while President Trump said it’s an attempt to interfere with the 2024 election and part of a longstanding effort to politically harm him. Several co-defendants who were charged with the rest, including attorney Sidney Powell and former Trump lawyer Jenna Ellis, have pleaded guilty as part of a plea deal with prosecutors.

Several days ago, Cobb County Superior Court Judge Henry Thompson ordered the unsealing of records relating to the divorce proceedings of Mr. Wade, although few details about his alleged relationship with Ms. Willis were revealed. The judge also stayed a request on an earlier subpoena for Ms. Willis to testify in the matter.

Meanwhile, Ashleigh Merchant, an attorney for Mr. Roman, has told local media that she will issue subpoenas in the case, saying that she has evidence, documents, and witnesses who can back up Mr. Roman’s allegations. The motion provided little evidence to substantiate Mr. Roman’s claims against Mr. Wade and Ms. Willis, although neither have publicly denied they were in a relationship.

Mr. Wade’s wife provided financial statements in a motion during the proceedings. They allegedly show that Mr. Wade purchased two plane tickets to San Francisco and Miami with Ms. Willis while the election-related case against President Trump was ongoing.

Fulton County Judge Scott McAfee has scheduled a Feb. 15 hearing on the issue. He also ordered Ms. Willis to provide a response to the Roman motion by Feb. 2.

Reuters contributed to this report.