In a surprising turn of events, Jenna Ellis, a former attorney for Donald Trump’s 2020 campaign, has pleaded guilty in the Georgia election case, marking a significant development in the ongoing legal battles surrounding the 2020 presidential election. Ellis is the third attorney connected to the former president to accept a plea deal in the extensive criminal racketeering case.
Ellis faced two charges, including violating Georgia’s anti-racketeering act, but on Tuesday morning, she pled guilty to a single felony count of aiding and abetting false statements and writings. This plea deal enables her to avoid jail time, provided she cooperates by providing evidence that could implicate other defendants and agrees to testify in potential future trials. Notably, Ellis worked closely with Rudy Giuliani, another defendant facing 13 charges in the same case.
A Historic Moment
This plea marks the first instance in which a senior aide to Donald Trump has been held criminally accountable for and has openly acknowledged making false statements regarding the integrity of the 2020 presidential election. In a heartfelt admission during a court hearing, Ellis expressed her regret, stating that she was mistaken and misled, no longer supporting the false claims she once echoed.
“If I knew then what I know now, I would have declined to represent Donald Trump in these post-election challenges,” Ellis candidly admitted.
Before Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee, Ellis and her attorneys, Franklin and Laura Hogue, listened as a prosecutor read details of an amended indictment. As part of the agreement, Ellis accepted a three to five-year probation, 100 hours of community service, and agreed to pay $5,000 in restitution to the Georgia secretary of state. She also committed to penning a letter of apology to the state of Georgia.
Co-Defendants and Their Guilty Pleas
Ellis joins a growing list of Trump co-defendants who have pleaded guilty in the case, which was brought forward by Fulton County District Attorney Fani T. Willis. Notably, Atlanta bail bondsman Scott Hall, accused of playing a significant role in the conspiracy to overturn Trump’s loss in Georgia, entered a guilty plea on September 29, cooperating with prosecutors. Furthermore, former pro-Trump attorneys Sidney Powell and Kenneth Chesebro also pleaded guilty recently, just before their joint trial.
As part of their plea agreements, Hall, Powell, and Chesebro provided lengthy video statements answering prosecutors’ questions about their roles in the alleged election interference conspiracy.
Ellis is the second co-defendant with direct links to Donald Trump to plead guilty in the case. Originally hired as a legal adviser to the Trump campaign in late 2019, Ellis was a familiar face on Fox News. She worked alongside Giuliani and Sidney Powell, consistently echoing false claims of election fraud as part of the post-2020 election legal team. Her involvement extended to battleground states, including Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, and Pennsylvania, where she allegedly urged lawmakers to reject the popular vote results. The Georgia indictment also highlighted memos she wrote for Trump, outlining ways Vice President Mike Pence could potentially overturn the election results.
Public Reckoning and Speculation
Ellis had previously faced admonishment from a Colorado judge for her false statements about the 2020 election. During that process, she acknowledged that several of her previous statements were untrue, admitting to acting “with a reckless state of mind” and acknowledging selfish motives that had “undermined the American public’s confidence in the presidential election.”
What remains unknown is the extent of Ellis’s cooperation with prosecutors and the documents she might provide in the case. Speculation had swirled for weeks about Ellis seeking a plea deal, partially fueled by her public complaints about Trump’s unwillingness to cover her increasing legal expenses.
In addition to her legal career, Ellis hosts a podcast for the American Family Network and publicly declared in September that she was unlikely to support Trump’s 2024 nomination bid. She cited concerns about his behavior, stating, “I simply can’t support him for elected office again due to his frankly malignant narcissistic tendencies and insistence that he’s never done anything wrong.”
Steve Sadow, lead counsel for Trump in the Georgia case, questioned the prosecution’s willingness to dismiss Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations charges (RICO) as he highlighted what he believed was District Attorney Willis’s true strategy. Sadow argued that this so-called RICO case was nothing more than a bargaining chip and noted that Ellis’s plea was related to a completely separate charge not originally mentioned in the indictment, which did not even mention President Trump.
This unexpected development has sent shockwaves through the ongoing legal battles concerning the 2020 election, leaving many to wonder about the potential implications for other co-defendants and the wider political landscape.