MOSCOW, Nov 10 — United States (US) President Donald Trump has signed a decree pardoning dozens of individuals accused of interfering in the 2020 presidential election, said Pardon Attorney Ed Martin, reported Sputnik/RIA Novosti.
Those pardoned include Trump's former lawyer cum former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani and ex-White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows.
"This proclamation ends a grave national injustice perpetrated upon the American people following the 2020 Presidential Election … I, Donald J. Trump, do hereby grant a full, complete, and unconditional pardon
"… This [list of pardons] includes, but is not limited to: Rudolph Giuliani ... Mark Meadows," Martin published the pardon text on X (formerly Twitter) late on Sunday.
The document added that the pardon does not apply to Trump himself. The decree appears to have been signed on November 7.
In April 2024, a grand jury in the US state of Arizona indicted 11 of Trump's close associates in the alleged interference in the 2020 election, including Giuliani, for allegedly attempting to overturn Trump's defeat in the election.
In May 2024, Giuliani was served an indictment during his birthday celebration. Subsequently, the court ordered him to pay US$148 million (RM615.6 million) to two Georgia election commission employees for slander and emotional distress.
On January 6, 2021, pro-Trump demonstrators breached the Capitol complex and delayed the certification of the 2020 presidential election results in favour of former US president Joe Biden.
Hundreds of individuals have since been charged with crimes related to the riot. More than 1,570 defendants have been federally charged with crimes related to the January 6 attack.
Immediately after his inauguration in 2025, Trump signed a decree pardoning about 1,500 people convicted of the Capitol storming. Many of those prosecuted were barred from visiting Washington, D.C., or leaving the state even after their release.
