The BBC's Today programme has spoken to a number of officials about the charge against Trump.

Renato Mariotti, a former federal prosecutor, says there's a very good chance the trial may not occur until after the presidential election.

He reminds us that Trump has two other criminal cases against him and "can't be on trial on all these cases at the same time".

Sebastian Gorka, a former strategist to Trump, says the charges brought against him are "all garbage and can all be thrown out of court".

Joe Walsh, a former Republican Congressman who broke rank with his party over Donald Trump in the 2020 election, says Trump tried to halt the peaceful transfer of power in America.

Image source, Reuters

It's probably fair to say Joe Biden had a more easy-going Tuesday than his predecessor.

While Donald Trump was learning the scale of the charges he faces over his conduct in the aftermath of the 2020 election, Biden hit the beach, rode his bike and saw a film.

He was pictured grinning and waving to onlookers while cycling near Rehoboth Beach, close to the Delaware holiday home where the president is taking a summer break.

As the Trump indictment was being unsealed, he and wife Jill headed down to Matt's Fish Camp for dinner, Reuters reported.

The couple then went to a local cinema to watch Oppenheimer, before rounding off their day with a moonlit walk.

Reporters were kept at a polite distance and Biden did not field any questions on Trump's situation.

Image source, EPA

Members of the Democratic party have been chiming in on Trump's latest indictment.

"The bedrock of our legal system is the principle that justice applies to everyone equally. No one is above the law," Senator Corey Booker said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

California congressman Adam Schiff said: "Can the rule of law be enforced against a former president and current candidate? For the sake of our democracy, that answer must be yes."

Senator Dick Durbin said: "The anger & resentment Donald Trump stoked with his ‘Big Lie’ put the country a half step away from a constitutional crisis, led to a deadly insurrection... & left an embarrassing stain on our nation’s history."

And Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer and House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries released a joint statement: "This indictment is the most serious and most consequential thus far and will stand as a stark reminder to generations of Americans that no one, including a president of the United States, is above the law."

Image source, Reuters

We've heard from some of the main contenders vying to beat Donald Trump to the Republican nomination for the 2024 election.

• Florida Governor Ron DeSantis - widely seen as Donald Trump's main challenger - wrote, external on X, formerly known as Twitter, that if elected he would "end the weaponsation of government". He said Washington DC is a "swamp" and "it is unfair to have to stand trial before a jury that is reflective of the swamp mentality".

• Former Vice President Mike Pence said, external "anyone who puts himself over the Constitution should never be president of the United States". Some of the indictment concerns alleged efforts to pressure him into overturning the election.
• Former governor of New Jersey Chris Christie said Trump "will probably be on bail in four jurisdictions" by the first Republican TV debate on 23 August. He told CNBC that independent voters would reject Trump over his legal troubles.
• South Carolina Senator Tim Scott said he is "concerned about the weaponisation of Biden’s DOJ and its immense power used against political opponents".
• Vivek Ramaswamy, a businessman, said the indictment is un-American and denied Trump was responsible for the 6 January Capitol riot, and vowed to pardon him if elected.

Trump's lawyers will argue there's not enough time to preparepublished at 07:33 British Summer Time 2 August 2023

07:33 BST 2 August 2023

Sean Dilley
North America correspondent in Washington

These are quite extraordinary allegations which focus around two months in the aftermath of the November 2020 US election.

There's no direct suggestions of directly inciting the violence we all saw on 6 Jan 2021, but rather a lot of talk about claims Trump was trying to persuade, and even trick states, into helping him overturn that election.

There were various theories of tens of thousands of dead voters in parts of the country, Trump says. In other parts of the US it was stuffing ballot boxes, or election machines switching votes to Joe Biden - and none of these claims were backed up with evidence.

It's reasonably likely this trial happens before the presidential election, but it's not likely to happen on the timescale that prosecutor Jack Smith has given.

Smith has talked about a speedy trial, a right a defendant has, which would see a 70 day maximum time between the first appearance in court tomorrow in Washington DC and the actual trial.

What that doesn't take account of is the fact Trump's lawyers will argue there's simply not enough time to prepare their case.

Image source, Reuters

If you're new to this story, here's a reminder of the new charges brought against former US President Donald Trump yesterday:

• Trump has been charged with plotting to overturn his 2020 US election defeat to Joe Biden
• He's accused of four counts including conspiracy to defraud the US, tampering with a witness and conspiracy against the rights of citizens
• Trump is due to appear in court tomorrow in Washington DC
• Special counsel Jack Smith pledged to seek "a speedy trial"
• The indictment lists six unnamed co-conspirators who allegedly helped Trump carry out his unlawful efforts to overturn the election results
• Trump has already been charged in two other cases: mishandling classified files and falsifying business records to cover up a hush-money payment to a porn star

Anthony Zurcher
North America correspondent

If Donald Trump's indictments haven't moved the political needle, next year's big question could be whether trials and possible convictions could finally alter the sharp partisan divides in US public opinion on him.

So far, Republican voters' support for the legally embattled former president appears unaffected, but that could change in 2024.

Next year, Trump will have to deal with a clash between campaign events and court appearances at his trials which could each last weeks.

However, there's no equivalent historical context that can shed light on - or predict - this never-before-seen scenario.

Here’s what his schedule could look like:

Many of you may have questions about this complicated case. First up, what exactly is an indictment?

In plain terms, an indictment is a formal document that lists the crimes someone is accused of.

Click the video above to watch this handy explainer of US legal terms in under 90 seconds.

Jamie Whitehead
Live reporter

Welcome back.

We’ll be bringing you more reaction and analysis from yesterday’s news that former US President Donald Trump has been charged with four counts after a grand jury examined his efforts to overturn the 2020 US election result, which was won by Joe Biden.

I’m here in London this morning with Emily McGarvey and Sean Seddon to bring you the latest, and you can get up to speed on this story here.

Thanks for tuning in to our live coverage today. We'll be back on Thursday to cover Donald Trump's arraignment in court in Washington DC.

Read more of our coverage on the indictment:

• Who is special counsel Jack Smith?
• What are the four new charges against Trump
• Trump's support thrives despite his legal woes

Special thanks to our contributors who helped with this page: Brandon Drenon, Madeline Halpert, Kayla Epstein, Malu Cursino, Jacqueline Howard and Jack Burgess.

The page was edited by Brajesh Upadhyay, Marianna Brady and Brandon Livesay.

On Tuesday, special counsel Jack Smith's office unsealed new charges brought against Donald Trump.

Here's what we learned:

• Trump has been charged with four counts after a grand jury examined his efforts to overturn the 2020 election result
• Charges include three counts of conspiracy and an attempt to obstruct an official proceeding
• The indictment alleges Trump "knowingly" told lies to subvert the 2020 election results against the advice of his own appointees
• Trump has been summoned to appear in court on Thursday in Washington DC before a judge
• Special counsel Jack Smith, whose office already has brought charges against Trump over alleged mishandling of classified documents in Florida, said he will seek a "speedy trial"
• The indictment also lists six unnamed co-conspirators who allegedly helped Trump spread his false claims
• Trump has called the indictment "fake" and claims it is being issued in an attempt to ruin his 2024 bid for the White House

Kayla Epstein
US reporter

The indictment does not just allege Trump made false claims - it says that he knew that what he was saying about the election results wasn't true.

But Trump has a First Amendment right to express his views, and therein lies at least one hurdle for Jack Smith.

"Some of the speech might be protected by the First Amendment," said Aziz Huq of the University of Chicago Law School. But, he added, "speech that is used to facilitate the crime is almost never covered by the First Amendment."

That might be a reason why Smith works hard to say these statements were a component of Trump's conspiracy to undermine the election.

"The defendant's knowingly false statements were integral to his criminal plans to defeat the federal government function, obstruct the certification, and interfere with others' right to vote and have their votes counted," states one key passage.

Here are the main legal cases the former US president is involved in.

• January 6 election interference case (Washington DC): Trump charged with four counts including conspiracy to defraud the United States and an attempt to obstruct an official proceeding. He will be arraigned in court on 3 August.
• Hush money case (New York): Trump is facing 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in connection to hush money payments made before the 2016 election to adult film star Stormy Daniels.

• Classified documents case (Florida): Trump faces 40 criminal charges over his alleged mishandling of classified material after he left the White House.
• Georgia election interference (Georgia): Of the four key cases we are watching, this is the only one that is still in the investigation phase - meaning no indictments have been issued.

Earlier this year in a civil trial, a jury found Trump sexually abused E Jean Carroll and awarded the writer almost $5m (£3.9m) in damages.

Meanwhile, the business practices of his family company, the Trump Organization, are also being examined by prosecutors in New York.

Image source, Getty Images

Some of the top charges Trump is facing in the 6 January case carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

The first charge, conspiracy to defraud the US, carries a maximum sentence of five years, while two other charges, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding and obstruction of an official proceeding, come with maximum 20 year prison sentences.

Anthony Zurcher
BBC North America correspondent

Donald Trump's mounting legal troubles have not dented his status as the clear frontrunner for the Republican presidential nomination in 2024.

In fact, the criminal charges have strengthened his position.

An average of opinion polls from 31 July suggests he has a commanding lead of 37 points over his nearest rival, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.

No-one else in the crowded field of 14 candidates scores over 6%, and more than half of them are not even at 1%.

He maintains a lead, despite his legal woes, largely because most Republican voters see the charges as politically motivated.

Trump will need to hope that thinking prevails.

Following today's indictment, more charges from prosecutors in Georgia could arrive soon. Prosecutors there allege Trump tried to overturn the 2020 election in the Peach State.

Image source, BBC News

Trump's case has been assigned to US District Court Judge Tanya Chutkan, who was appointed by former president Barack Obama in 2014.

The judge has already ruled against Trump in the past when he tried to use executive privilege to block access to records from his time in the White House connected to the 6 January riot.

“Presidents are not kings, and plaintiff is not president,” Chutkan said in that ruling.

Image source, US District Court for the District of Columbia

Kayla Epstein
US reporter

The indictment lists six unnamed co-conspirators alongside Trump, who prosecutors allege helped him carry out his efforts to undermine the election. But they are not being charged here.

Prosecutors included these individuals to back up their conspiracy charges, Aziz Huq of the University of Chicago Law School explained.

Basically, you can't have a conspiracy with just one person - you have to conspire with others.

There are many possible reasons prosecutor decided not to name the co-conspirators here, Huq said. For one, these individuals could be co-operating with the government.

"The government is deciding to move sequentially in filing criminal charges," Huq said. "So it has the choice to file charges against one person, but it's not guaranteed that all the people who are listed will be eventually charged."

Image source, Getty Images

The indictment says Trump lied and echoed false claims of election fraud, despite repeated warnings from multiple people in his circle, those "whom he relied" on for "candid advice".

The list includes:

• Vice-President Mike Pence, who "told [Trump] he had seen no evidence of outcome-determinative fraud"
• Senior leaders of the Justice Department appointed by Trump, told him on "multiple occasions" that his fraud allegations were unsupported
• Senior White House attorneys appointed by Trump, told him "that his presidency would end on Inauguration Day in 2021"

The indictment says Trump had been informed directly that his claims were not true and he knowingly repeated the lies to "interfere with others' right to vote", one of the three conspiracy charges he faces.

Let's now go back to the 45-page indictment, and delve into what the federal government has accused Donald Trump of.

A recurring allegation in the document is that Trump repeatedly lied about the 2020 presidential election being rigged.

Trump created widespread mistrust through "pervasive and destabilizing lies about election fraud", the indictment claims.

Prosecutors allege that Trump was told numerous times that the allegations were false, but he "deliberately disregarded the truth".

A wave of reactions is now coming through from members of the Republican party.

In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Ohio congressman Jim Jordan said: “When you drain The Swamp, The Swamp fights back. President Trump did nothing wrong!”

Matt Gaetz, a Representative from Florida, said: "DEFUND JACK SMITH'S WITCH HUNT AGAINST PRESIDENT TRUMP!”

Florida governor Ron DeSantis, currently Trump's biggest rival for the nomination in 2024, didn't come to Trump's defence directly but derided the US government's alleged "weaponization" of the federal branch.

"Washington, DC is a 'swamp' and it is unfair to have to stand trial before a jury that is reflective of the swamp mentality," DeSantis said.