Two of Donald Trump’s leading challengers for the 2024 GOP Republican primary have each recently said they will issue a presidential pardon to the former president should he be convicted of any of the 91 felony charges he currently faces.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former Governor of South Carolina Nikki Haley argued during separate campaign stops last week that offering clemency to Trump is in the country’s national interest.
Each had previously provided hints that they might issue a pardon, but their recent statements were more definitive, leaving little doubt weeks before the first nominating contests in January.
DeSantis revealed at a campaign stop in Elkader, Iowa that he would pardon a convicted Trump because “we got to move on as a country.”
Haley told a crowd in Plymouth, New Hampshire, on Thursday that she would also pardon Trump if he is found guilty of the charges against him.
Aside from Trump, who leads in polling and fundraising, the top three of the GOP’s four candidates have pledged to pardon him, with entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy also committing to the move in July.
