Jury selection begins today in Donald Trump’s Manhattan criminal trial, a first for an American ex-president.
Manhattan prosecutors, who have accused Trump of falsifying records to cover up a sex scandal, have advantages that include insider witnesses and a jury pool drawn from one of the most liberal counties in the U.S. Mr. Trump and some aides and lawyers privately concede that the jury is unlikely to acquit him outright, according to people with knowledge of the discussions.
So Trump is seeking to write his own reality, telling a story that he believes could pave his return to the White House in November. He has framed his failed efforts to delay the case as evidence that he cannot receive a fair trial, casting himself as a political martyr under attack from the prosecution and the judge.
Win or lose, Trump will be the first presidential candidate whose political fate, before being decided by millions of voters, will be shaped by 12 people in a jury box.Here’s what to know about the trial.
