Alabama residents and policy makers offered mixed, partisan reactions to the jury’s decision on Thursday, May 30, to find former President Donald Trump guilty of 34 charges of falsifying business records.

Trump maintained his innocence in a statement released shortly after the jury delivered the verdict Thursday.

“This was a disgrace. This was a rigged trial by a conflicted judge who was corrupt. It’s a rigged trial,” the statement said. “I’m a very innocent man, and it’s OK, I’m fighting for our country. I’m fighting for our Constitution. Our whole country is being rigged right now.”

Alabama Republican Party chairman John Wahl said the former President has the full support of the ALGOP in the aftermath of the trial which he said, “threatens the very foundations of our democratic system.”

“The leftist-inspired court case against him is clearly politically motivated. The facts surrounding this entire situation date back to 2016. These Democrat elected officials had eight years to bring charges but chose to act only when Donald Trump started leading Joe Biden in the polls. The justice system should never be used as a political weapon, and we are deeply disappointed by what we have seen throughout this case,” Wahl said Thursday.

“We are seeing the justice system being used as a political weapon, and no matter what you believe that has to be concerning,” Wahl said. “The timing of the charges being brought up, to the unwillingness of the judges to move the case to a different jurisdiction, it just seems like it was being used for political motives.”

Wahl also noted the possible effect the guilty conviction may have on the future of Trump’s political campaign in his run for his second term as president.

“I don’t think it is ever good to be convicted,” Wahl said. “But, I do think the American people are becoming more aware and more concerned about government corruption, so if they see this as corruption it will help Trump.”

That sentiment was reciprocated by Ken Hines, the former chairman of the Limestone County Democratic Party.

“I do not believe Trump’s conviction will make much difference,” Hines said. “It will not dissuade his faithful, and it will not provide new hope to the disillusioned. Unless those of us who still have hope can convey it to those who do not, it is difficult to imagine any single event that ultimately will make a difference.”

Both Alabama senators Tommy Tuberville and Katie Britt echoed statements shared by Trump following the verdict.

“Today is a sad and shameful day. Democrats just set the dangerous, destructive precedent of the party in power weaponizing prosecutorial powers against their political adversary. This is a hallmark of a banana republic, not a constitutional republic,” Britt posted on X.

Tubberville described the trial as a “political witch hunt” and “a complete joke” which only served to interfere in the upcoming presidential election.

“Liberal activist Alvin Bragg and Biden-donor Judge Merchan had a shared goal: to put President Trump behing bars. Whether you consider the lopsided jury, the gag order issued to silence only President Trump, the prosecutions failure to outline the alleged underlying crimes, or the lack of a unanimous verdict required for conviction, this trial was a complete joke and a massive misuse of taxpayer dollars,” Tubberville said in a statement.

New York law says that while “unlawful means” may not be used to promote a candidate’s election, prosecutors are not required to describe which particular underlying crime took place. Before jury deliberations began Wednesday, May 29, Merchan instructed jurors they “must be unanimous” on each count to reach a guilty verdict. He said they must agree Trump falsified business records with the intent to commit or conceal another crime but did not have to reach an agreement on which particular “unlawful means” he may have used.

Regardless of the decision, Cullman County GOP Chairman Alex Chaney said the more encompassing voice of the American people would be expressed on election day.

“The people of the United States will determine our next president in November, not 12 jurors in one of the most liberal cities in the country,” Chaney said.

On Friday, the Alabama Democratic Party directed The Times to the statement released by the Biden Campaign which said the verdict demonstrates how “no one is above the law,” but also encouraged Democratic supporters to remain vigilant during the remaining months before November.

“Donald Trump has always mistakenly believed he would never face consequences for breaking the law for his own personal gain. But today’s verdict does not change the fact that the American people face a simple reality. There is still only one way to keep Donald Trump out of the Oval Office: at the ballot box,” the statement said. “Convicted felon or not, Trump will be the Republican nominee for president.”

Several local Democratic supporters said they felt the verdict would do little to deter support from Trump’s most loyal supporters, but struggled to make sense of the reality.

“Witnessing the Clinton era Promise Keepers type evangelicals who insisted on voting for leaders with integrity overwhelmingly vote for Trump has been and is the most politically disturbing thing I’ve ever witnessed. I don’t imagine the guilty verdicts will change that support,” Cullman County construction worker Josh Freeman said.

Chairman of the Cullman County Democratic Party Lance Conn described the convictions as a “drop in the bucket,” for many voters.

“For those firmly on either side of the aisle, I don’t expect much to change,” Conn said. “It’s difficult to see my Republican friends, especially those who taught my Sunday School classes growing up, ignore the constant warning signs regarding the character of their presumptive presidential nominee. These are people who hold each other accountable and stand for righteous behavior in all circumstances. I cannot reconcile the conservative ethos they espouse with the convicted felon they idolize. If he’s re-elected, I’m left wondering if any criminal or treasonous action would give them pause.”