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Saturday 18 May 2024

FILE - Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani speaks in Washington, Dec. 15, 2023. Giuliani has been served an indictment in Arizona's fake elector case for his alleged role in an attempt to overturn former President Donald Trump’s loss to Joe Biden in the 2020 election.
FILE - Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani speaks in Washington, Dec. 15, 2023. Giuliani has been served an indictment in Arizona's fake elector case for his alleged role in an attempt to overturn former President Donald Trump’s loss to Joe Biden in the 2020 election.

Arizona's attorney general says former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani has been served an indictment in the state's fake elector case alongside 17 other defendants for his alleged role in an attempt to overturn former President Donald Trump's loss to Joe Biden in the 2020 election.

Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes posted the news regarding the Trump-aligned lawyer on her X account late Friday.

"The final defendant was served moments ago. @RudyGiuliani nobody is above the law," Mayes wrote.

To be served an indictment means to have been notified of the charges against you.

The attorney general's spokesman Richie Taylor said in an email to The Associated Press on Saturday that Giuliani faces the same charges as the other defendants, including conspiracy, fraud and forgery charges.

Giuliani's political adviser, Ted Goodman, confirmed Giuliani was served Friday night after his 80th birthday celebration as he was walking to the car.

"We look forward to full vindication soon," Goodman said in a statement Saturday.

The indictment alleges that Giuliani "pressured" Arizona legislators and the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors to change the outcome of Arizona's election and that he was responsible for encouraging Republican electors in Arizona and six other contested states to vote for Trump.

Taylor said Giuliani is expected to appear in court Tuesday unless he is granted a delay by the court.

Mark Meadows, Trump's former chief of staff, is among others who have been indicted in the case.

With the indictments, Arizona becomes the fourth state where allies of the former president have been charged with using false or unproven claims about voter fraud related to the election.

Giuliani was also indicted last year by a grand jury in Georgia, where he is accused of spearheading Trump's efforts to compel state lawmakers in Georgia to ignore the will of voters and illegally appoint pro-Trump electoral college electors.

Among the defendants are 11 Arizona Republicans who submitted a document to Congress falsely declaring that Trump won in Arizona in the 2020 presidential election. Amond the 11 are a former state GOP chair, a 2022 U.S. Senate candidate and two sitting state lawmakers. The other defendants are Mike Roman, who was Trump's director of Election Day operations, and four attorneys accused of organizing an attempt to use fake documents to persuade Congress not to certify Biden's victory: John Eastman, Christina Bobb, Boris Epshteyn and Jenna Ellis.

Biden won Arizona by more than 10,000 votes.

Trump himself was not charged but was referred to as an unindicted co-conspirator.

Biden launches $14M ad campaign to reach young Black voters
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The US presidential race is on — and each of the candidates is attempting to pull certain populations away from his competitor. The Black voting bloc in the US has historically voted Democrat. But as VOA’s Carolyn Presutti shows us, the Biden campaign is getting worried.

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