Trial for former Florida gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum starts next week

Former Democratic gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum is scheduled to stand trial starting Monday on a series of criminal charges.

A document filed Thursday after U.S. District Judge Allen Winsor held a pre-trial hearing said jury selection will start Monday and that attorneys should be prepared to give opening arguments.

It also indicated the trial could last three weeks.

Gilum, a former Tallahassee mayor, and a longtime adviser, Sharon Lettman-Hicks, were indicted last year on charges including wire fraud.

The charges came after a lengthy federal investigation into corruption in city government and included allegations that political contributions were diverted to Gillum’s personal use.

What is known as a “superseding” indictment was issued Tuesday. But the document filed Thursday said that filing did not lead to a request for a continuance and that the trial will “proceed as scheduled.”

Gillum narrowly lost the 2018 gubernatorial race to Republican Ron DeSantis.

This article appears in Apr 13-19, 2023.