Lights. Camera. Handcuffs. Tomorrow Donald Trump faces the "perp walk". He will be bundled into the Manhattan courthouse past throngs of media, opponents and supporters. Inside, officers will take his mug shot and fingerprints. Then, they will read the first-ever indictment of a former US president.

We have yet to find out the charges levelled against Trump by New York District Attorney Alvin Bragg. But for weeks, a grand jury has examined evidence about money paid to keep a scandal out of the news during Trump's 2016 presidential campaign. Last Thursday, they voted to bring him to book.

Trump's team paid the adult film star Stormy Daniels $130,000 (£105,000) to stay quiet about their alleged affair. This "hush money" was legal, but Trump's lawyer Michael Cohen failed to declare the payment properly. In 2018, he was jailed for campaign finance violations.

Now the justice system is coming for Trump - and making history in the process. The only president ever to be arrested was Ulysses Grant, fined $20 in 1872 for speeding his horse-drawn carriage. No ex-president has faced trial - a tradition designed to stop politically motivated attacks on outgoing leaders.

Trump calls it a Democratic "witch hunt" to sabotage his plans for re-election. His opponents fear a trial will make him a martyr to the MAGAMake America Great Again. The slogan was a key part of Trump's election campaign in 2016.  movement and boost his support. But if convicted, can he still run? And will he win?

Experts say these charges are unlikely to lead to jail time. But even if they did, he could still be the 47th president. In 1920, the Socialist Party candidate Eugene Debs won almost a million votes while serving time for opposing World War One. Convicts can be elected in the land of the free.

But a long legal fight and trial may suck time and energy out of Trump's campaign, keeping him from his rallies. Swing voters may be put off. And supporters could flock to an alternative candidate offering Trump's politics without all the "antics", says Republican strategist Matt Dole.

However, the latest poll gives the former president a 30-point lead over his nearest rival. Republican adviser Whit Ayres maintains no one cares about this "years-old event" in Trump's past and it will only unite the party against what they see as "political persecution".

Insiders say Trump wants to be handcuffed when arrested - although his lawyer says he will come quietly. His former legal adviser, Rudy Giuliani, was the original mastermind behind the "perp walk" to publicly humiliate white-collarRelating to the work done by people in non-manual, office jobs. criminals. Will Trump turn it to his advantage?

Republican strategist Robert Cahaly predicts supporters will wear Trump's mug shot as a "badge of honour". But commentator Tom Nichols says it is "to our shame" that millions voted for him twice and will vote for him again, regardless or because of his behaviour.

Trump may face more serious charges. He is under investigation for interfering with votes in GeorgiaA state in the southern USA. Also a country at the intersection of Europe and Asia. and stoking the 6 JanuaryThen-US president Donald Trump was accused of inciting a mob of his supporters to storm the US Capitol on 6 January 2021 in a bid to overturn the 2020 election results. riots. Win or lose, he will be centre-stage in US politics for a long time to come.

Yes: To qualify to stand for president of the United States, you must be a natural-born citizen over the age of 35. No charges, trials or jail time can stop Trump's constitutional right to run for office.

No: There must be standards for participation in public life. If he is innocent, Trump must first clear his name. If found guilty of wrongdoing, he should lose the support of his party and US voters.

Or... It depends. Tomorrow's charges may not be serious enough, but the constitution can bar those "engaged in rebellion". Some legal experts say Trump's threat of violence qualifies as insurrectionA violent uprising against a government..