Trump campaign says Sidney Powell not a member of legal team

Attorney Sidney Powell speaks to the press about various lawsuits related to the 2020 election, inside the Republican National Committee headquarters on November 19, 2020. Credit: AFP Photo

US President Donald Trump's election campaign issued a statement on Sunday distancing itself from Sidney Powell, a lawyer who made baseless allegations of voter fraud at a campaign press conference on Thursday.

"Sidney Powell is practicing law on her own," Trump campaign lawyers Rudy Giuliani and Jenna Ellis said in the statement. "She is not a member of the Trump Legal Team. She is also not a lawyer for the President in his personal capacity."

The announcement came one day after a judge dismissed the campaign's lawsuit seeking to halt President-elect Joe Biden's victory in Pennsylvania, dealing a major blow to Trump's flailing efforts to overturn his November 3 election loss.

Also read: Donald Trump hit with new blow in bid to overturn vote results

Powell did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Trump had referred to Powell as one of his lawyers in a November 14 tweet.

"Rudy Giuliani, Joseph diGenova, Victoria Toensing, Sidney Powell, and Jenna Ellis, a truly great team, added to our other wonderful lawyers and representatives," Trump said in the tweet.

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