Fani Willis: what is the Georgia Trump prosecutor’s hearing about?

The case brought against Donald Trump in Georgia is a powerful, sprawling indictment that charges the former US president and his top allies with violating the state’s racketeering statute over their efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election.

In January, the case was roiled by an explosive complaint filed by Trump’s co-defendant Michael Roman, who alleged that a secret personal relationship between the Fulton county district attorney, Fani Willis, and her deputy Nathan Wade, amounted to a conflict of interest that warranted their disqualification.

The latest twist in the weeks-long saga came earlier this month, when Willis acknowledged in a court filing that she had a relationship with Wade, but that it began after he had been retained to work on the Trump case.

Here’s what you need to know.

Judge Scott McAfee is holding an evidentiary hearing to determine whether Willis should be disqualified from the case. While legal experts generally agree that her conduct does not merit disqualification, the hearing could still be hugely damaging for her credibility in the public eye by diving into details about her relationship with Wade.

Wade’s former law partner is expected to be among the witnesses who testify at the hearing, which could stretch into Friday.

Roman has sought to have Wade and Willis testify at the hearing, and McAfee has said he will decide whether to force them to take the stand after hearing testimony from other witnesses.

Wade and Willis say their relationship began only after she hired him to work on the Trump case in 2021. Roman’s lawyer has indicated she plans to produce evidence showing that’s not true.

Willis and Wade, a special prosecutor working on the case against Trump and 14 other defendants,