NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump has been convicted in his New York hush money trial, a landmark jury verdict making him the first former American president to be found guilty of felony crimes in the nation’s nearly 250-year history. The jury’s judgment Thursday caps a trial centered on lurid claims of sex and financial coverups and exposes Trump to prison time. The verdict represents a stunning courtroom reckoning for Trump, who was indicted in three other felony cases but wasn’t convicted until now. Coming six months before the presidential election in which Trump is the presumptive Republican nominee, the verdict will test voters’ willingness to elect for the first time a candidate with a criminal record related to hush money payments to a porn star.
Here are reactions from Illinois politicians to the verdict. This is a Breaking Story that will be updated.
Reaction from Gov. JB Pritzker (D-IL):
“Justice has been served. After facing a jury of his peers, Donald Trump is exposed as the liar and fraud that he is. Trump evaded the law to deceive voters and today, the law caught up with him.
“Donald Trump is a racist, a homophobe, a grifter, and a threat to this country. He can now add one more title to his list – a felon. But let me be clear, Donald Trump will never be 47.”
Reaction from Rep. Mary Miller (R-IL 15th congressional district):
Reaction from Rep. Mike Bost (R-IL 12th congressional district):
“New York’s six-week sham trial against President Trump has eroded the public’s trust in our legal system in a way that will take years to overcome,” said Bost. “The trial, along with all the character attacks, campaign interference and Hollywood cameos that surrounded it, had one purpose: to weaken President Trump before the 2024 election. It won’t work. Even after today’s verdict, he is strengthened with an American public that is fed up with liberals weaponizing the legal system for their partisan political gain.”
Former Rep. Adam Kinzinger, a Republican who served on the January 6th congressional committee, issued this message on the social media on X (formerly known as Twitter).:
“It’s likely that some member of the jury were trump supporters, yet when placed in this position of such seriousness, did their duty without concern for politics. The system may not be perfect, but our fellow Americans know the importance of it, and today did their job, honorably.
If Donald Trump was in the military, he would be immediately discharged less than honorably, and his security clearance would be revoked.He also cannot vote for himself, or own a firearm.
Trump is now ineligible for even a basic “secret” security clearance.”
Reaction from U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL):
“As I’ve said all along: no one is above the law—not even a former president. Consistent with the rule of law, a jury of his peers found the former president guilty on all counts. Today’s verdict is another reminder that Donald Trump is unfit for public service. Now, it is up to the American people to decide if he is worthy of the seat behind the Resolute desk in the Oval Office.”
Reaction from State Rep. Adam Niemerg (R-102nd District)
“What the far-left is doing to President Donald Trump is shameful. There was no fairness here. This was a political witch hunt from the start. Joe Biden has shown totalitarianism and authoritarianism are the new norm for the Democrat party. They wanted a conviction to help prop up Biden’s fading poll numbers and that is what they got with a partisan judge and prosecutor and a jury in a part of the country that hates President Trump. Joseph Stalin would be proud. The Democrats have shown that they cannot be trusted to be anywhere near power. They must be stopped and the only way to do that is for Donald Trump to win in a landslide in November.”