The Georgia election interference case against former President Donald Trump has a new prosecutor nearly a year after Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis was disqualified from handling it. Peter Skandalakis, executive director of the Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council of Georgia, announced Friday that he will take over the case himself.
Willis was removed from the case in December 2024 after a state appeals court found that her relationship with special prosecutor Nathan Wade created the appearance of a conflict of interest. Since then, the case has been stalled while officials sought a replacement. Skandalakis said difficulties in finding another attorney willing to take the high-profile case led him to step in.
“Several prosecutors were contacted and, while all were respectful and professional, each declined the appointment. Out of respect for their privacy and professional discretion, I will not identify those prosecutors or disclose their reasons for declining,” Skandalakis said. “I have determined that the best course of action is to appoint myself to the case.”
Skandalakis, a veteran Georgia prosecutor, previously served as district attorney for the Coweta Judicial Circuit southwest of Atlanta for more than 25 years before becoming head of the Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council in 2017. He began his career as an assistant district attorney in 1984 and earned multiple awards, including the Georgia District Attorney of the Year in 2007 and the Governor’s Public Safety Award in 2015.
The prosecutor cited public interest as a key reason for taking on the case. “While it would have been simple to allow Judge McAfee’s deadline to lapse or to inform the Court that no conflict prosecutor could be secured—thereby allowing the case to be dismissed for want of prosecution—I did not believe that to be the right course of action,” Skandalakis said.
The case, State of Georgia v. Donald J. Trump, et al., was originally brought in August 2023. Willis charged Trump and 18 associates with attempting to overturn the 2020 election results in Georgia, where Trump lost by a narrow margin. The charges included violating state racketeering laws, conspiring to commit forgery, and making false statements. Trump has pleaded not guilty, while some co-defendants have entered plea deals.
The case gained national attention after a January 2021 phone call in which Trump told Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger that it was “not possible” he lost and asked him to “find 11,780 votes” in his favor. Willis opened an investigation shortly afterward.
The prosecution faced setbacks in 2024, including the resignation of Wade, the dismissal of several counts by Fulton County Judge Scott McAfee, and the appeals court ruling that removed Willis from the case. Willis appealed her removal, but the state Supreme Court declined to review the decision in September.
Skandalakis’ appointment marks a critical step in reviving the case, though it remains uncertain how quickly proceedings will move forward or whether the case will ultimately reach trial.
