Special Prosecutor Nathan Wade resigned on Friday following a judge declaring that either Wade or Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis had to step down to continue their case against Donald Trump.
Willis faced a potential disqualification over the misuse of taxpayer dollars and her relationship with Wade. “The state has admitted a relationship existed. And so what remains to be proven is the existence and extent of any financial benefit, again if there even was one,” Judge Scott McAfee wrote last month. “And so because I think it’s possible that the facts alleged by the defendant could result in disqualification, I think an evidentiary hearing must occur to establish the record on those core allegations.”
“I think the issues at point here are whether a relationship existed, whether that relationship was romantic or non-romantic in nature, when it formed, and whether it continues,” the judge explained. “And that’s only relevant because it’s in combination with the question of the existence and extent of any personal benefit conveyed as a result of their relationship.”
Wade wrote in a letter announcing his resignation, “Although the court found that ‘the defendants failed to meet their burden of proving that the District Attorney acquired an actual conflict of interest,’ I am offering my resignation in the interest of democracy, in dedication to the American public, and move this case forward as quickly as possible.”
Willis responded to Wade’s resignation by saying, “I will always remember — and will remind everyone — that you were brave enough to step forward and take on the investigation and prosecution of the allegations that the defendants in this case engaged in a conspiracy to overturn Georgia’s 2020 presidential election.”
She praised Wade, noting, “You were the one who had the courage to accept the role, even though you did not seek it.”
