Trump faces $200,000 bond in Georgia election case

Former US President Donald Trump will face a $200,000 bond and orders not to send threatening social media messages as he awaits trial in Georgia on charges of trying to overturn his 2020 election loss, a court filing on Monday showed.

The document, a bond agreement signed by Trump's attorneys and Fulton Country District Attorney Fani Willis, sets out release terms including restrictions on intimidating witnesses and obstructing justice.

"The above shall include, but are not limited to, posts on social media or reposts of posts made by another individual on social media," states the order, signed by Fulton County Superior Court judge Scott McAfee.

Trump, the front-runner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, and 18 co-defendants were indicted in the Georgia case on August 14.

Willis gave them until Friday at noon (8:00 pm GMT) to surrender to charges against them or face arrest.

The former president plans to surrender on Thursday in Atlanta he said on social media on Monday.

"I'll be going to Atlanta, Georgia, on Thursday to be ARRESTED," Trump, who is running for reelection in 2024, said on his Truth Social platform. He described the indictment as a politically motivated effort to derail his reelection campaign.

CNN earlier reported that Trump planned to turn himself in at the Fulton County jail in Atlanta on Thursday.

Trump's former personal lawyer John Eastman, also indicted in the Georgia case, plans to surrender to Fulton County authorities on Wednesday, a court filing showed on Monday.

Trump has pleaded not guilty in all criminal cases and could spend much of next year in court, even as he campaigns to retake the White House.

Trump's surrender on Thursday will come a day after the first Republican primary presidential debate that the former president does not plan to attend.

Prosecutors in the case have proposed that the trial start on March 4, 2024, while Trump's lawyers have asked for a 2026 trial.