After indictment, Trump raises over $4 mn in 24 hours

Washington: Donald Trump raised over USD 4 million towards his 2024 presidential run in 24 hours after a Manhattan grand jury indicted the former US president on charges related to paying off a porn star, his office has said.

According to the former president's campaign, over 25 per cent of donations came from first-time donors to the Trump Campaign, further solidifying his status as the clear frontrunner in the Republican primary. "This incredible surge of grassroots contributions confirms that the American people see the indictment of President Trump as a disgraceful weaponisation of our justice system by a Soros-funded prosecutor," it said in a statement on Friday.

"With an average contribution of only USD 34, Trump's 2024 campaign is funded by an unmatched coalition of hardworking patriots who are fed up with special interest donors like Soros spending billions of dollars to influence our elections," it said.

Americans from across all 50 states donated to President Trump's campaign within the first five hours of the "sham indictment", the statement said. The grand jury on Thursday voted to indict Trump, a Republican, for his role in paying money to porn star Stormy Daniels in an attempt to buy her silence over an alleged affair.

Trump, who is the first former US president to face a criminal charge, will be arraigned on Tuesday. The indictment remains under seal and it is not clear what crimes and how many criminal counts Trump has been charged with. On Thursday, within minutes of Trump's indictment, the Trump campaign fired off a fundraising email soliciting contributions toward the 76-year-old's 2024 campaign. It was the first of more than half a dozen fundraising emails sent out by the Trump campaign after the indictment. The White House has refused to comment on the indictment of the former president. "I have no comment on that," President Joe Biden told reporters on Friday. Vice President Kamala Harris told reporters in Zambia: "I am not going to comment on an ongoing criminal case as it relates to the former president."

Trump, the 45th US President from 2017 to 2021, has denied all wrongdoing in connection with the payments made ahead of the election in 2016. Trump is currently the front-runner among all declared and potential contenders for the 2024 Republican White House nomination. There is nothing in US law that prevents a candidate who is found guilty of a crime from campaigning for and serving as president - even from prison. Trump was twice impeached by the House of Representatives. He was acquitted by the Senate both times.