"We're witnessing American history," says legal expert of Trump's indictment

The charges, arising from an investigation led by Democratic Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, could reshape the 2024 presidential race. Trump previously said he would continue campaigning for the Republican Party's nomination if charged with a crime.

In a statement, Trump said he was "completely innocent."

"This is Political Persecution and Election Interference at the highest level in history," he said, providing no evidence.

The specific charges are not yet known and the indictment will likely be unsealed by a judge in the coming days. Trump will have to travel to Manhattan for fingerprinting and other processing at that point.

"We're witnessing American history. Never has a former president been indicted or charged with the crime. And that's what we're seeing here," said Neama Rahmani, a former federal prosecutor and president of West Coast Trial Lawyers.

Trump's lawyers Susan Necheles and Joseph Tacopina said they will "vigorously fight" the charges.

Necheles said she did not know when Trump would surrender.

Bragg's office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The Manhattan investigation is one of several legal challenges facing Trump, and the charges could hurt his presidential comeback attempt. Some 44% of Republicans said he should drop out of the race if he is indicted, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released last week.

"I think he's going to try to rally his base and use these charges as a political lightning rod. Even if he's convicted, I fully believe that many of the supporters will believe that this whole process was illegitimate," Rahmani said.

The White House declined to comment.

Bragg's office last year won the criminal conviction of the businessman-turned-politician's real estate company.

The grand jury convened by Bragg in January began hearing evidence about Trump's role in the payment to Daniels days before the 2016 presidential election that he ended up winning. Daniels, a well-known adult film actress and director whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, has said she received the money in exchange for keeping silent about a sexual encounter she had with Trump in 2006.

The former president's lawyer Michael Cohen has said Trump directed hush payments to Daniels and to a second woman, former Playboy model Karen McDougal, who also said she had a sexual relationship with him. Trump has denied having affairs with either woman.

"This is a unique case in that Trump's lawyers were offered the opportunity to meet with deputies at Alvin Bragg's office, and they tried to stave off an indictment. That meeting reportedly did not go well, and that's what they told the press. So between the leaks from Bragg's office, what's being reported by Trump's lawyers and Trump denying the opportunity to testify, it was clear that this indictment was going to happen. It wasn't a matter of if, but when," Rahmani said.

"No one is above the law," Daniels's lawyer Clark Brewster said on Twitter.

Federal prosecutors examined the Daniels payoff in 2018, leading to a three-year prison sentence for Cohen but no charges against Trump. Cohen testified that Trump directed him to make the payments.

"Accountability matters," Cohen told MSNBC.

No former or sitting US president has ever faced criminal charges. Trump also faces two criminal investigations by a special counsel appointed by US Attorney General Merrick Garland and one by a local prosecutor in Georgia.

Reuters