On the first day of the first trial against a former US president, jury selection was on the agenda.
Choosing a jury that can fairly and without bias decide in a case against a character as prominent and controversial as Donald Trump is no easy task.
Of the 96 possible jurors called on Monday, 50 declared that they felt they could not fairly decide the case and was immediately dismissed by the judge presiding over the trial, according to The New York Times.
The process, which will end up with a jury consisting of 12 jurors and up to six alternates, could take two weeks - or more.
Although not saying much in the courtroom, according to the BBC, Trump said the trial was “an assault on America” outside the court on Monday.
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The case is one of four criminal cases that is expected to go to trial against the ex-president.
The prosecution claims that during the 2016 presidential campaign, Donald Trump, through his then-attorney Michael Cohen, made payments to adult film actress Stormy Daniels to keep quiet about an alleged affair, a process often referred to as 'hush money'.
Allegedly, Trump's actions crossed legal boundaries. Accusations against him include falsifying business records to conceal the nature of payments to Cohen and conducting an illegal strategy to influence the 2016 election.
This purported strategy entailed locating, acquiring, and hiding damaging stories about Trump to benefit his campaign.
The upcoming trial could be a decisive factor in this year's presidential race.
A Reuters/Ipsos poll indicates that 64% of registered voters view the allegations against Trump as "somewhat serious" or more, including about 40% of Republicans and 66% of independents.
The in three additional criminal cases, Trump is involved in, are related to alleged vote tampering in Georgia, interference in relation to the in the January 6th Capitol riots, and improper handling of classified documents.