ATLANTA — A Republican attorney who previously interned at the White House during Donald Trump’s administration is contesting the candidacy against Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis. Willis has garnered attention for her role in filing charges against the former president related to attempts to overturn the outcome of the 2020 presidential election.
Courtney Kramer, who served in the White House counsel’s office while Trump was in office and remains active within Republican circles, marks a significant political shift as she is the first Republican to enter the race for Fulton County district attorney since the year 2000. The county itself is noted as a Democratic stronghold, encompassing approximately 11% of Georgia’s electorate and most of Atlanta.
Willis assumed her role in January 2021, succeeding her predecessor Paul Howard after a contentious Democratic primary in 2020. Notably, only a month into her term, she publicly revealed an investigation into whether Trump and others had violated any laws in their efforts to contest his narrow defeat to Democrat Joe Biden in Georgia. After an extensive inquiry—highlighted by testimony from numerous witnesses before a special grand jury—she secured a broad racketeering indictment against Trump and 18 co-defendants in August 2023.
As developments unfolded, four individuals have already admitted guilt through plea deals arranged with prosecutors. Meanwhile, Trump along with the other defendants have filed not guilty pleas concerning the allegations against them.
When Kramer declared her candidacy in March, she characterized the prosecution of Trump as politically driven and an inefficient use of resources. She stated, however, that should she become the district attorney, she would remove herself from this particular case due to her previous involvement with two of the defendants.
At 31 years old, Kramer identifies “front-end prosecution” as one of her main objectives, which she defines as the prompt evaluation of incoming cases to facilitate crucial decisions regarding bonds, provide necessary discovery to defense attorneys, and determine whether an early plea deal could be beneficial in resolving cases efficiently.
In contrast, Willis, aged 53, takes pride in implementing a pre-indictment diversion initiative and a program in schools aiming to steer students away from gang involvement and criminal activity. During her time in office, she has highlighted accomplishments such as the reduction of homicides and addressing the backlog of cases awaiting indictment. Should she secure a second term, Willis intends to prioritize enhancing resources for victims of domestic violence throughout the county.