Answers to your questions about Donald Trump's historic hush money trial conviction

NEW YORK (AP) — Will Donald Trump go to prison? Could he pardon himself? What about the election? The first criminal conviction of a former American president raises a host of legal and political questions.

Trump was convicted by a Manhattan jury Thursday of 34 felony counts related to a scheme during his 2016 presidential campaign to pay off a porn actor who said the two had sex. The presumptive Republican presidential nominee denies having sex with Stormy Daniels, has said he did nothing wrong and slammed the jury's verdict.

Here are answers to some of the biggest questions surrounding Trump's conviction:

Trump remains free on his own recognizance. He will have to be back in the Manhattan courtroom on July 11, when he is set to be sentenced. That is just days before the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, where GOP leaders — who remain steadfast in their support of Trump — are expected to formally make him their nominee for the November election.

Before sentencing, Trump will be interviewed for a presentence report that Judge Juan M. Merchan will use to help decide his punishment. The report is typically prepared by a probation officer, a social worker or a psychologist working for the probation department who interviews the defendant and possibly that person's family and friends, as well as people affected by the crime. Presentence reports include a defendant’s personal history, criminal record and recommendations for sentencing. Trump has no prior convictions.

Trump is charged in three other criminal cases, but it's possible none of them will go to trial before the election. The 2020 election interference case in Washington, for example, remains on hold while the U.S. Supreme Court weighs Trump's claim that he is immune from prosecution for actions taken as commander in chief.

It's not clear. That will be up to the judge, who Trump has repeatedly accused of being biased against him. Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, who brought the case, refused to say Thursday whether prosecutors will seek prison time.

Each count of falsifying business records is punishable by up to four years behind bars, but it's possible that Trump will get only fines or probation. New York court records and newspaper archives show defendants convicted of the charge are seldom sentenced to prison for that offense alone. Often, the charge is coupled with more serious felonies such as grand larceny.

And even if the judge sentences him to time behind bars, his lawyers would almost certainly push the judge to allow the former president to remain free until he exhausts his appeals.

Trump faces the threat of more serious prison time in the three other cases. For example, the most serious charges in Trump’s Washington and Georgia election interference cases carry maximum 20-year sentences.

Yes. There's nothing barring Trump from continuing his bid to reclaim the White House or from becoming president. There are only three qualifications for president spelled out in the Constitution: Candidates must be at least 35 years old, be natural born citizens and must have lived in the U.S. for at least 14 years. There are no restrictions on his travel at this point either, so he can continue to campaign normally.

Trump attorney Todd Blanche said on the “Today” show Friday: “We’re going to appeal, and we’re going to win on appeal.” Trump's lawyers laid the groundwork throughout the trial to challenge the verdict on multiple issues.

Blanche suggested they will challenge the judge's decision not to recuse himself. Trump has repeatedly argued Merchan should not have presided over the case, citing cash he's given to Democrats and the fact that his daughter is a party consultant. Merchan has acknowledged making several small donations to Democratic causes during the 2020 campaign, including $15 to Trump’s Democratic rival, Joe Biden, but rejected Trump's claims he cannot fairly preside over the case.

Trump's lawyers may also challenge rulings from the judge they claim unfairly hampered his defense, including limiting the testimony of an expert witness they wanted to put on the stand.

No. It's a state conviction, so Trump would not be able to pardon himself if he were to become president again. Presidential pardons apply only to federal crimes. And it's a legally untested question as to whether Trump would even have the power to pardon himself if he's convicted in the federal cases. No president has attempted to do so while in office because no president before Trump had ever been charged or convicted.

He can, as long as he is not in prison. Trump's home state of Florida defers to other states’ disenfranchisement rules for residents convicted of out-of-state felonies. And New York law removes the right to vote for people convicted of felonies only while they’re incarcerated. Once they’re out of prison, their rights are automatically restored, even if they’re on parole, per a 2021 law passed by the state’s Democratic legislature.

Trump said Thursday that “the real verdict is going to be Nov. 5 by the people,” referring to Election Day.

It's unclear to what extent his guilty verdict will impact his bid to unseat Biden. The election is expected to be incredibly tight, and it’s not clear how voters who are on the fence — especially independents and other key voting blocs — will feel when they go to the polls.

Republican lawmakers who have been divided in the past over their support for Trump lined up behind him in the wake of the conviction, slamming the judge and prosecutors.

Trump's campaign hopes his supporters will be similarly galvanized by the case, which Trump has cast as an effort to tank his White House bid. His campaign immediately began fundraising off the conviction with messages such as: “I WAS JUST CONVICTED IN A RIGGED TRIAL!” Another message to supporters read: “If they can do this to me, they can do this to anyone.”

Trump’s campaign said Friday morning that it raised a record $34.8 million in small online contributions off his conviction — nearly double its previous largest haul.

Richer reported from Washington. Associated Press journalists Jill Colvin and Luke Sheridan in New York contributed to this report.

Former President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference at Trump Tower, Friday, May 31, 2024, in New York. A day after a New York jury found Donald Trump guilty of 34 felony charges, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee addressed the conviction and likely attempt to cast his campaign in a new light. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)

Former President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference at Trump Tower, Friday, May 31, 2024, in New York. A day after a New York jury found Donald Trump guilty of 34 felony charges, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee addressed the conviction and likely attempt to cast his campaign in a new light. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)

Former President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference at Trump Tower, Friday, May 31, 2024, in New York. A day after a New York jury found Donald Trump guilty of 34 felony charges, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee addressed the conviction and likely attempt to cast his campaign in a new light. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)

Answers to your questions about Donald Trump's historic hush money trial conviction

Former President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference at Trump Tower, Friday, May 31, 2024, in New York. A day after a New York jury found Donald Trump guilty of 34 felony charges, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee addressed the conviction and likely attempt to cast his campaign in a new light. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)

Answers to your questions about Donald Trump's historic hush money trial conviction

VINEYARD HAVEN, Mass. (AP) — Lewis Pugh has followed an unspoken rule during his career as one of the world’s most daring endurance swimmers: Don’t talk about sharks. But he plans to break that this week on a swim around Martha’s Vineyard, where “ Jaws” was filmed 50 years ago.

The British-South African was the first person to complete a long-distance swim in every ocean of the world — and has taken on extreme conditions everywhere from Mount Everest to the Arctic.

“On this swim, it’s very different: We’re just talking about sharks all the time,” joked Pugh, who will, as usual, wear no wetsuit for the 62-mile (100-kilometer) swim.

For his swim around Martha’s Vineyard in 47-degree (8-degree Celsius) water he will wear just trunks, a cap and goggles.

Pugh, 55, is undertaking the challenge because he wants to change public perception around the now at-risk animals — which he said were maligned by the blockbuster film as “villains, as cold-blooded killers.” He will urge for more protection for sharks.

“We need to protect life in our oceans — all our futures rely on it,” he said on Thursday before starting out from a beach in front of the Edgartown Harbor Lighthouse and swimming an initial 3.9 miles (6.2 kilometers) for nearly three hours. On Friday, he'll get in the water and swim again — and again, for an estimated 12 days, or however long it takes him to complete the swim. He'll spend the rest of his time on the Vineyard educating the public about sharks.

Later Thursday, he crawled out of the water, where curious seals bobbed in the waves, and onto a boat to warm up and refuel.

He began his endeavor just after the New England Aquarium confirmed the first white shark sighting of the season, earlier this week off the coast of Nantucket.

“It’s going to test me not only physically, but also mentally,” he said, while scoping out wind conditions by the starting line earlier this week. “I mean every single day I’m going to be speaking about sharks, sharks, sharks, sharks. Then, ultimately, I’ve got to get in the water afterwards and do the swim. I suppose you can imagine what I’ll be thinking about.”

Pugh said the swim will be among the most difficult he’s undertaken, which says a lot for someone who has swum near glaciers and volcanoes, and among hippos, crocodiles and polar bears. No one has ever swum around the island of Martha's Vineyard before.

But Pugh, who often swims to raise awareness for environmental causes — and has been named the United Nations Patron of the Oceans for several years — said no swim is without risk and that drastic measures are needed to get his message across: Around 274,000 sharks are killed globally each day — a rate of 100 million every year, according to the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

“It was a film about sharks attacking humans and for 50 years, we have been attacking sharks,” he said of “Jaws.” “It’s completely unsustainable. It’s madness. We need to respect them.”

He emphasizes that the swim is not something nonprofessionals should attempt. He’s accompanied by safety personnel in a boat and kayak and uses a “Shark Shield” device that deters sharks using an electric field without harming them.

Pugh remembers feeling fear as a 16-year-old watching “Jaws” for the first time. Over decades of study and research, awe and respect have replaced his fear, as he realized the role they play in maintaining Earth’s increasingly fragile ecosystems.

“I’m more terrified of a world without sharks, or without predators,” he said.

“Jaws” is credited for creating Hollywood’s blockbuster culture when it was released in summer 1975, becoming the highest grossing film up until that time and earning three Academy Awards. It would impact how many viewed the ocean for decades to come.

Both director Steven Spielberg and author Peter Benchley have expressed regret over the impact of the film on viewers’ perception of sharks. Both have since contributed to conservation efforts for animals, which have seen populations depleted due to factors like overfishing and climate change.

Discovery Channel and the National Geographic Channel each year release programming about sharks to educate the public about the predator.

Greg Skomal, marine fisheries biologist at Martha’s Vineyard Fisheries within the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries, said many people tell him they still won't swim in the ocean because of the sheer terror caused by the film.

“I tend to hear the expression that, ‘I haven’t gone in the water since ‘Jaws’ came out,’” he said.

But Skomal, who published a book challenging the film's inaccuracies, said “Jaws” also inspired many people — including him — to study marine biology, leading to increased research, acceptance and respect for the creatures.

If “Jaws” were made today, he doesn't think it'd have the same effect. But in the 1970s, “it was just perfect in terms of generating this level of fear to a public that was largely uneducated about sharks, because we were uneducated. Scientists didn’t know a lot about sharks.”

Skomal said the biggest threat contributing to the decline of the shark population now is commercial fishing, which exploded in the late 1970s and is today driven by high demand for fins and meat used in food dishes, as well as the use of skin to make leather and oil and cartilage for cosmetics.

“I think we’ve really moved away from this feeling, or the old adage that, ‘The only good shark is a dead shark,’” he said. “We’re definitely morphing from fear to fascination, or perhaps a combination of both.”

See an AP photo gallery from around Martha's Vineyard and the start of Pugh's swim here.

An app is used to monitor endurance swimmer Louis Pugh's temperature while he swims in 47 degree F water, Thursday, May 15, 2025, off Edgartown, Mass. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)

Endurance swimmer Louis Pugh swims off the coast pf Edgartown, Mass., Thursday, May 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)

Endurance swimmer Louis Pugh warms up on the ride back to shore after completing the first leg of his swim around Martha's Vineyard, Thursday, May 15, 2025, off Edgartown, Mass. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)

Endurance swimmer Louis Pugh swims near the Edgartown Harbor Light, Thursday, May 15, 2025, in Edgartown, Mass. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)

A woman views the sunset at Menemsha Beach, Wednesday, May 14, 2025, in Chilmark, Mass. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)

A man navigates the wake behind the Martha's Vineyard Ferry, Monday, May 12, 2025, in Vineyard Haven, Mass. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

A visitor arrives at a shop selling Jaws-related souvenirs, Wednesday, May 14, 2025, in Edgartown, Mass. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)

A shopper walks past items featuring the Jaws movie at Neptune's Sea Chest gift shop, Monday, May 12, 2025, in Vineyard Haven, Mass., on Martha's Vineyard Island. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

Endurance swimmer Lewis Pugh gestures to where he will begin his swim around Martha's Vineyard island, which is expected to take 12 days, near the Edgartown Lighthouse, Monday, May 12, 2025, in Edgartown, Mass. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

A family walks to the span of the American Legion Memorial Bridge, also known as the "Jaws Bridge", while spending the day fishing, Monday, May 12, 2025, in Edgartown, Mass., on Martha's Vineyard Island. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)