Trump was convicted in May 2024 on 34 felony counts in the New York hush‑money case, making him a legally defined felon during the 2024 campaign.(apnews.com) After the verdict, Democrats explicitly incorporated his felony status into their messaging: the DNC and Biden/Harris campaigns ran paid ads and billboards labeling him a convicted felon and framing the race as prosecutor versus felon, including the Phoenix billboard, the Character Matters ad, and the Law & Order–style convention spot, as well as broader strategy pieces describing this contrast as a key weapon.(cbsnews.com) Despite this, Trump won the 2024 presidential election with 312 electoral votes and a popular‑vote plurality, and Republicans captured the presidency and control of Congress, indicating that the felon‑focused line of attack did not prevent his political success or keep him from remaining highly competitive and ultimately victorious.(en.wikipedia.org) Given that the strategy was clearly used and Trump still prevailed, Sacks’s prediction that it was probably not going to work is borne out by the eventual results.