Fani Willis Faces Testimony From Two County Officials

Two officials of Fulton County, Georgia, are set to testify in a Republican probe of alleged misconduct by Democratic District Attorney Fani Willis.

Earlier this year, Georgia State Senate Republicans established a special committee to "thoroughly investigate the allegations of misconduct" against Willis and her "potential conflicts of interest and misuse of public funds," while threatening to "enact new or amend existing laws" targeting the district attorney.

Willis has ruffled the feathers of Georgia Republicans since indicting former President Donald Trump on multiple felony election subversion charges last year. Trump is accused of attempting to illegally overturn his 2020 loss to President Joe Biden in the Peach State after making evidence-free claims that the contest had been "stolen."

The special committee announced on Thursday that two county officials—Sharon Whitmore, chief financial officer, and Robb Pitts, Board of Commissioners chairman—would be testifying under subpoena in a hearing set for 10 a.m. Friday.

"The meeting will include sworn testimony from witnesses Robb Pitts and Sharon Whitmore and the production of documents pursuant to the subpoena," according to a press release.

It is unclear what role, if any, Pitts and Whitmore will play in the GOP committee's goal of exposing alleged misconduct by Willis.

Newsweek reached out for comment to the office of Willis via email on Thursday.

In March, Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee ruled that Willis could stay on the Trump case despite complaints concerning her past relationship with Special Prosecutor Nathan Wade.

McAfee said that the relationship created "the appearance of impropriety" but was "legally insufficient" to establish a conflict of interest in the case. Wade quickly resigned his position "to move this case forward as quickly as possible."

In addition to Republican complaints about Willis allegedly having a conflict of interest in the Trump case due to her relationship with Wade, she is also facing ethics complaints claiming that her office misused funds. Willis has denied any wrongdoing.

The Department of Justice said last month that it had "noticed some inconsistencies" in the way that Willis' office had used federal grant money and was "working with them to update their reporting."

Willis has also been investigated by the Republican-led judiciary committee in the U.S. House, where GOP lawmakers have largely boosted Trump's claims of being politically "persecuted" in the courts.

The case against Trump in Georgia focuses on the so-called "fake electors" plot and the former president's post-election phone call to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, in which he suggested that Raffensperger could "find" him enough votes to overturn his loss to Biden.

Trump has pleaded not guilty to all 10 felony charges in Fulton County, while also maintaining innocence in his three other criminal cases, including the ongoing hush-money trial in New York City. No trial date has been set for Trump's case in Georgia.