Georgia prosecutors have launched a criminal investigation into Trump's election pressure campaign: NYT

<p><img src="https://static2.businessinsider.com/image/5ff302493793140019e281c2-2212/trump impeached georgia.jpg" border="0" alt="trump impeached georgia" data-mce-source="Getty"></p><p></p><bi-shortcode id="summary-shortcode" data-type="summary-shortcode" class="mceNonEditable" contenteditable="false">Summary List Placement</bi-shortcode><p>Prosecutors in Georgia's most populous county have launched a criminal investigation into former President Donald Trump's monthslong pressure campaign to invalidate the results of the presidential race in the state, which notably included Trump <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-brad-raffensperger-phone-call-georgia-votes-presidential-election-2021-01">making a phone call</a> to Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to "find" more votes, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/10/us/politics/trump-georgia-investigation.html'referringSource=articleShare">according to The New York Times</a>.</p><p>Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, a Democrat, has sent a letter to a range of state officials asking them to retain sensitive materials that are related to Trump's phone call, according to the report.&nbsp;</p><p>An official who chose to remain anonymous told The Times that the letter indicated that the request was centered around a criminal investigation.</p><p>The Georgia investigation will be based in a heavily Democratic jurisdiction that was overwhelmingly won by President Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election.</p><p>This decision comes after Raffensperger <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/08/us/politics/trump-georgia-election-investigation.html'action=click&amp;module=RelatedLinks&amp;pgtype=Article">announced</a> that his office would launch an administrative inquiry into Trump's January 2 phone call.</p><p>According to the report, Willis was mulling over a decision to launch an investigation after the roughly hourlong <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-brad-raffensperger-phone-call-georgia-votes-presidential-election-2021-01">phone conversation</a> where Trump implored Raffensperger to "find" the nearly 12,000 votes that would be needed to overcome Biden's statewide tally.</p><p>Last December, Trump also pleaded with GOP Gov. Brian Kemp <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/brian-kemp-trump-phone-call-oveturn-georgia-election-results-biden-2020-12">to call a special session</a> in a mission to overturn the election results by having the GOP-controlled legislature install pro-Trump presidential electors. Kemp balked at the request, which caused Trump to <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/brian-kemp-white-house-christmas-party-trump-twitter-attacks-georgia-2020-12">mercifully attack him</a> in the press and online for weeks.</p><p>The Georgia Republican Party has been embroiled in turmoil for months.</p><p>Last November, Biden <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/joe-biden-wins-georgia-democratic-party-south-presidential-election-2020-11">became</a> the first Democratic presidential nominee to win Georgia since Bill Clinton in 1992, a huge blow for the party, and was followed by the January 2021 <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/georgia-senate-runoff-election-results-democrats-regain-control-2020-10">Senate runoff victories</a> of Democrats Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff over then-GOP Sens. Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue, respectively.&nbsp;</p><p>Trump also faces <a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-new-york-campaign-finance-cyrus-vance-jr-manhattan-f841d62dbf6d1a8ba2949bc577858f6e">a criminal investigation</a> in New York, where Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance is looking into possible financial crimes.</p><p>New York Attorney General Letitia James <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/morgan-lewis-hand-over-trump-org-docs-ny-ag-investigation-2021-1">launched</a> a separate civil fraud investigation into Trump and his businesses.</p><p><em>This story has been updated.</em></p><p><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/georgia-prosecutors-trump-criminal-investigation-election-interference-fulton-county-2021-2#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> <p>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/electric-planes-future-of-aviation-problems-regulations-2020-3">Why electric planes haven't taken off yet</a></p>
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