Judge releases parts of Trump grand jury report

A Georgia judge on Thursday released parts of a highly anticipated report on whether former President Donald Trump and allies broke the law in their attempts to overturn his election loss.

The report summarises a two-year grand jury probe into their 2020 conduct in Georgia.

It states that the grand jury believes some witnesses committed perjury in their testimonies to the panel.

The report's introduction and conclusion were also unsealed.

"A majority of the Grand Jury believes that perjury may have been committed by one or more of the witnesses testifying before it," stated the report - which was released by Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney on Thursday.

The grand jury also recommended that the county's district attorney "seek appropriate indictments for such crimes where the evidence is compelling".

To date, no formal charges have been brought against Mr Trump or any of his associates.

The special grand jury cannot issue indictments, but can recommend that charges be brought.

No former president has been indicted in US history.

The grand jury also rejected false claims from former President Donald Trump that the election had been rigged, saying it found "by a unanimous vote that no widespread fraud took place in the Georgia 2020 presidential election that could result in overturning that election". 

The special grand jury - which dissolved in January - interviewed dozens of witnesses and prominent Republicans in its investigation into Mr Trump and his allies' post-election conduct, including Mr Trump's former personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, Republican Georgia Governor Brian Kemp, and South Carolina Republican Senator Lindsey Graham.

Mr Trump lost to President Joe Biden by 11,779 votes in the state of Georgia in 2020.

The grand jury probe was sparked by an hour-long phone call in January 2021 between Mr Trump and Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, during which the former president asked Mr Raffensperger to "find" the votes he needed to flip the results in his favour.

The investigation has expanded over time to include false claims of election fraud made to state lawmakers, as well as a scheme to send an alternate slate of Republican electors who met at the Georgia Capitol and signed statements falsely claiming Mr Trump had won the state of Georgia.

Mr Trump - who continues to deny the 2020 presidential election results - has called the grand jury investigation a "political witch hunt" and has said his call with Mr Raffensperger was "perfect".