Judge clears way for Trump to appeal ruling keeping Fani Willis on Georgia 2020 election case

ATLANTA (AP) — The judge overseeing the Georgia election interference case is allowing Donald Trump to appeal a ruling allowing Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis to remain on the prosecution.

Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee on Wednesday granted a request by defense attorneys to ask the Georgia Court of Appeals to review the judge’s decision. It’s now up to the appeals court to decide whether the court will hear it.

McAfee in a ruling last week denied the defense’s request to disqualify Willis from the case or dismiss the indictment over her romantic relationship with special prosecutor Nathan Wade. The judge said Willis can remain on the case as long as Wade resigns, which Wade did on Friday.

Wade’s resignation allowed Willis to remain on the most sprawling of four criminal cases against the presumptive Republican nominee in the 2024 presidential election.

But the long-term damage to the public perception of the prosecution remains unclear, particularly in light of Trump’s relentless barrage of attacks on the pair who pledged to hold Trump accountable but found their own actions under a public microscope.

Wade offered his resignation in a letter to Willis, saying he was doing so “in the interest of democracy, in dedication to the American public and to move this case forward as quickly as possible.”