DLNews Politics:

Could Trump also govern from jail?

It's a historic day: today, Donald Trump (76) becomes the first ex-U.S. president to be tried in a criminal court and is expected to be arrested.

Today, the former U.S. President Donald Trump could be arrested: The police in New York are preparing for protests.

The big question: what does this mean for his presidential campaign? And could Trump also run the U.S. from jail?

Will Trump be allowed to run the campaign from prison?

Yes, legally, there is nothing to prevent this in principle. According to the U.S. Constitution, the president must only meet three criteria: He must be born in the U.S., be at least 35 years old, and have resided in one of the 50 U.S. states or the District of Columbia for 14 years.

Historical examples already exist: Eugene V. Debs (d. 1926) ran his 1920 campaign from prison. He had been convicted in 1919 for his agitation against the participation of U.S. soldiers in the First World War. Debs ran the campaign from the U.S. Federal Penitentiary in Atlanta, garnering more than 900,000 votes (3.4 percent) for the Socialist Party.

And: His passive right to vote would still be given, but Trump himself would not be allowed to cast his vote because his home state of Florida prohibits this in the case of a conviction.

New Yorkers wait for the ex-president. An ultra supporter holds a placard that reads, "Trump or death."

Also bitter for the bon vivant: Trump would no longer be able to fly to his "Mar-a-Lago" estate in Florida for a relaxing weekend. Instead, there would be 24/7 jail-a-logo...

Could Trump also govern the most powerful country in the world as a convicted criminal?

Yes, a presidency from prison is also conceivable. After all, the charges against Trump for allegedly paying hush money or handling classified documents do not stand in the way of that: The 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution only prohibits the presidency for persons who have participated in an insurrection against the United States.

However, there is no historical example of a term of office behind bars. Only U.S. President Ulysses S. Grant (d. 1885) was briefly arrested in 1872 because he traveled too fast in his horse-drawn carriage.