And now we wait . . .

Good morning and welcome to US Election Countdown! I'm Steff Chávez, the FT's Washington reporter. Here’s what’s on deck today:

• Jury deliberations
• Nikki Haley’s former donors
• Swing state polling

Donald Trump’s fate is now in the hands of the jury.

These 12 New Yorkers — seven men and five women — began deliberations yesterday morning in Trump’s “hush money” trial, and could hand down a verdict at any moment now [free to read].

After deliberating for more than four hours yesterday, the panel sent two notes to the judge, one asking for some testimony to be read back to them, and the other to hear the jury instructions again. Deliberations resume at 9.30am Eastern time today.

New York law requires that jurors reach a unanimous decision on each of the 34 criminal charges against Trump. If they ultimately deadlock, the judge would have to declare a mistrial, and the Manhattan district attorney’s office would decide whether to try the case again.

If we get a guilty verdict, it’s unlikely that Trump would be locked up. He would likely appeal the verdict, in what would be a months-long process. He would also be a first-time offender, and there would be a ton of unprecedented logistical challenges around putting a former president, who must have Secret Service protection, in jail. It is not, however, out of the question.

Justice Juan Merchan told the jury on Wednesday to “consult with each other” and “not surrender an honest view of the evidence simply because [they] want the trial to end”.

As Merchan outlined the charges against Trump, the former president sometimes shook his head but at other points seemed to snooze. Afterwards, he told reporters that “Mother Teresa could not beat these charges” and “the whole thing is rigged”. As the jury deliberated, Trump railed against the case on his Truth Social platform, saying the trial is “a third world election interference hoax”.

Jury deliberations come after nine long hours of closing arguments on Tuesday, when prosecutors and defence attorneys outlined competing narratives of testimony from star witness Michael Cohen.

Campaign clips: the latest election headlines

• Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito has refused to step aside from cases related to Trump or January 6, despite reporting that flags affiliated with the “stop the steal” movement were hung outside his homes. [Free to read]
• The relationship between Trump and Elon Musk is growing, and the two have discussed an advisory role for the Tesla chief if the Republican makes it back into office. (WSJ)
• Democrats are in “freakout” mode over President Joe Biden’s re-election prospects as he lags behind Trump in the polls. (Politico) 
• How will the Biden campaign respond if Trump is convicted? (NYT)
• Robert F Kennedy Jr has filed an election complaint alleging that CNN colluded with Biden and Trump to exclude him from the June 27 debate. (AP News)

Behind the scenes

Now that Nikki Haley has said she will vote for Trump, a big question is whether her deep-pocketed donors will follow suit. . . . Register for the FT to keep reading the newsletter for free.