Donald Trump’s sex assault defamation trial delayed as he reveals verdict on Ron DeSantis

Donald Trump’s legal woes continue as he reveals whether Ron DeSantis could serve a future White House role after dropping out of the presidential race.

Former US president Donald Trump says it is “highly unlikely” that Ron DeSantis will serve a role in a second Trump administration after the Florida Governor abandoned his presidential run.

“It’s probably unlikely, but you know, I have to be honest, everything is a possibility, but I think it’s highly unlikely,” Mr Trump told Fox News.

“I have a lot of great people. And I have great people that have been with me right from the beginning,” Mr Trump said, noting that he still appreciated Mr DeSantis’ endorsement.

Mr DeSantis – who was once considered the party’s best chance to move on from Mr Trump – dropped out of the Republican presidential primary on Sunday (local time), ending what critics have called one of the worst campaigns in US history.

Meanwhile, Mr Trump’s sex assault defamation trial was postponed on the eve of the New Hampshire Republican presidential primary vote after a juror called in sick and the former US president’s lawyer was exposed to Covid-19.

Former US president Donald Trump leaves Trump Tower for Manhattan federal court before his trial was delayed. Picture: AFP

The motorcade of former US president Donald Trump leaves the Manhattan federal court after his defamation trial was cancelled. Picture: AFP

E. Jean Carroll, on right, leaves the Manhattan Federal Court. Picture: AFP

“We sent him home... We will not take testimony today, we will take the day off,” said Judge Lewis Kaplan of juror number three.

The trial, which began last week, is being held to determine how much Mr Trump must pay E. Jean Carroll for defaming her in denying her accusation that he sexually assaulting her in New York’s Bergdorf Goodman department store in the mid-1990s.

Ms Carroll, a successful writer, is seeking more than $10 million in damages for defamation by Mr Trump, whom another New York civil jury last year found liable for sexual assault against her.

WHITE HOUSE RACE NOW A TWO-PERSON BATTLE

The writing was on the wall for Mr DeSantis after he slumped to a devastating defeat in last week’s Iowa caucuses, which he had previously promised to win. He finished in a distant second place with 21 per cent of the vote, as Mr Trump won with 51 per cent.

The Florida Governor’s implosion turns the Republican nomination race into a two-person battle between Mr Trump and former United Nations ambassador Nikki Haley.

Ron DeSantis has dropped out of the presidential race, paving the way for Donald Trump. Picture: AFP

Republican presidential hopeful and former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley. Picture: AFP

Ms Haley finished third in Iowa and is favoured to perform more strongly in Tuesday’s New Hampshire primary, where she will have the support of moderate votes. But Mr DeSantis’s decision firms up the former president’s chances of running away with the nomination.

He said that despite his “disagreements with Donald Trump”, he would endorse him because he was “superior to the current incumbent Joe Biden” and had the support of the majority of Republican voters.

“He has my endorsement because we can’t go back to the old Republican guard of yesteryear, a repackaged form of warmed-over corporatism that Nikki Haley represents,” Mr DeSantis said in a video announcing the end of his campaign.

“The days of putting Americans last, of kowtowing to large corporations, of caving to woke ideology are over.”

The Republican nomination race is now a two-person battle between Donald Trump and former United Nations ambassador Nikki Haley. Picture: Getty Images

Mr DeSantis added: “If there was anything I could do to produce a favourable outcome – more campaign stops, more interviews – I would do it. But I can’t ask our supporters to volunteer their time and donate their resources when we don’t have a clear path to victory.”

In November 2022, Mr DeSantis romped to a dominant re-election win in the former swing state of Florida, establishing himself as a potential successor to the former president.

But his chances whittled away right from his campaign launch last May, a livestream event on X – the social media platform formerly known as Twitter – with its owner Elon Musk that was riddled with technical errors and widely mocked.

Despite spending tens of millions of dollars, Mr DeSantis continued to fall away in the polls as he refused to forcefully confront the former president and was instead attacked by Mr Trump for everything from his policy positions to rumours that he wore height-increasing lifts in his shoes.

Originally published as Donald Trump’s sex assault defamation trial delayed as he reveals verdict on Ron DeSantis