New York judge denies request for recusal from Trump criminal case

A New York judge has denied a motion for his recusal from former President Donald Trump's Manhattan criminal case.

In seeking Judge Juan Merchan's recusal, attorneys for Trump cited Merchan's involvement in a 2022 trial in which Trump's company was convicted of crimes. They also cited work done by Merchan's daughter for a Democratic consulting firm and demanded he explain donations totaling $35 to Democratic causes during the 2020 election cycle.

Merchan wrote in a ruling made public Monday that Trump's team "failed to demonstrate that there exists concrete, or even realistic reasons for recusal to be appropriate, much less required on these grounds."