Former US President Donald Trump arrived in Miami on Monday, where he will appear in court today to face charges over his handling of classified documents after leaving the White House.

At the same time, polls show him still ahead among Republican candidates.

Trump, who remains the favorite to win the nomination of the Republican party and run for president in 2024, is scheduled to appear in federal court in Miami, Florida today at 3:00 p.m. (local time, 10:00 p.m. Greek time).

He is accused that he retained in his possession classified documents relating to US national security and that he lied to officials who tried to retrieve them. The millionaire himself pleads not guilty and has promised to continue his campaign to be re-elected to the presidency.

Trump, who turns 77 on Wednesday, landed in Miami yesterday in a private jet with his name emblazoned on the side.

His supporters gathered outside a Trump-owned golf club near the airport. The former president is going to spend the night there.

“I hope the whole country is watching what the far left is doing in America,” Trump wrote on Truth Social before departing New Jersey.

So far, the former president’s court adventures have not affected his popularity among Republican voters.

A Reuters/Ipsos poll released yesterday shows that 81% of Republicans believes that the charges against Trump are politically motivated. According to the poll, the former president is still far ahead of the other candidates for the nomination.

About 43% of voters of Republicans said Trump is their preferred candidate, compared to 22% who support Florida Gov. Ron DeSandis.

In early May, 49 percent supported Trump to 19 percent who preferred DeSandis, but that was before the Florida governor officially entered the race for the nomination.

Trump accuses US President Joe Biden of orchestrates the federal case to undermine his election campaign. The Democratic president has declined to comment on the case.

For his part, Chris Christie, a former governor of New Jersey and an adviser to Trump’s 2016 campaign who has run for the Republican nomination, was asked yesterday on CNN whether he believes the Biden administration is using the Justice Department as a weapon against of Trump.

“I don’t think so,” he replied. “The evidence is quite incriminating,” he added.

Trump addressed a rapturous crowd in Georgia over the weekend, and his campaign team said he would make a statement Tuesday night after returning to New Jersey at about 8:15 p.m. tonight (local time, 03:15 a.m. Wednesday Greek time zone).

Meanwhile, Miami Police Chief Manny Morales he said authorities were preparing for the possibility that up to 50,000 supporters of the former president could gather in the city and, if necessary, would close streets in the center.

A possible federal trial in Florida is likely to begin after the November 2024 presidential election. Also another trial against Trump is expected to begin in March 2024, in a New York state court, accusing her of paying a former porn star to buy her silence before the 2016 election.