A federal judge on Friday rejected former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows’ request to transfer the Georgia election-interference case against him from state to federal court.

U.S. District Judge Steve C. Jones, based in the Northern District of Georgia, issued this decision, marking a setback for Meadows.

Meadows had hoped that a shift to federal court might lead to a swift dismissal of the case, as he argued that, as a federal officer, he was immune from prosecution for actions taken as part of his normal work.

The extensive indictment filed last month in Fulton County, Georgia, alleges that former President Donald Trump and 18 co-defendants, including Meadows, engaged in a far-reaching criminal enterprise to unlawfully overturn Trump’s defeat in the 2020 presidential election in Georgia.

This decision is the first significant ruling in the Georgia case, which will involve defendants appearing regularly in both state and federal courtrooms to address pretrial matters in the coming weeks. This underscores the case’s complexity and the potential for delays before it reaches a jury trial.

Jones’ ruling also has implications for four other co-defendants who sought to transfer their cases to federal court. During Meadows’ August 28 hearing, Jones indicated that his decision would set a precedent for other cases. Although Trump has not pursued removal, this decision could pose challenges for him if he chooses to do so.

The ruling represents a victory for Fulton County District Attorney Fani T. Willis, who will keep the case in Fulton County Superior Court. This allows her to retain her home-court advantage, as she is familiar with the judges and will follow established state, not federal, procedures during the trial.

If Meadows had succeeded, the next step for Jones would have been to consider Meadows’ request to dismiss the case outright using a legal principle similar to the one he relied on for removal — claiming immunity from prosecution as a federal officer.

Now, Meadows’ case will proceed in Fulton County Superior Court, with no opportunity to make this argument. However, he can appeal the decision to the 11th Circuit, a notably conservative court that may have a different perspective than Judge Jones, who was appointed by Barack Obama. Ultimately, Meadows could seek review of the issue from the U.S. Supreme Court.

This Georgia case marks the fourth criminal indictment against Trump this year. Special Counsel Jack Smith has brought two federal cases against him, one in Washington alleging election interference and the other in Miami alleging mishandling of classified documents post-presidency.

Trump contended that he reimbursed lawyer Michael Cohen for making payments to Daniels after taking office to protect his presidency, asserting he was acting as a federal official. However, U.S. District Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein ruled that the charges pertained to Trump’s personal life and did not involve his official duties as president.

Four defendants in the Georgia case, including former Justice Department official Jeffrey Clark, former Georgia Republican Party chairman David Shafer, Georgia state Sen. Shawn Still (R), and Cathy Latham, former GOP chair for Coffee County and a member of the Georgia Republican Party’s executive committee, have also sought to transfer their cases to federal court.

The 98-page indictment describes several actions taken by Meadows in the weeks following Trump’s defeat in the presidential election, including meetings with state lawmakers in Michigan and Pennsylvania and a visit to a Georgia location where absentee ballot signatures were being verified.

The indictment also accuses Meadows of illegally soliciting a public official to violate his oath by participating in a phone call with Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger (R) on January 2, 2021. During the call, Trump expressed a desire to “find” enough votes to reverse his loss to Biden.

At one point during the hearing, Jones pressed Meadows’s lead attorney, George J. Terwilliger III, on whether he believed there were any limitations to what Meadows could do in his role as Trump’s chief of staff. Terwilliger essentially answered in the negative, characterizing Meadows as Trump’s “alter ego” and consistently acting as a “federal authority” of the executive branch.

This assertion drew criticism from Donald Wakeford, an assistant Fulton County district attorney, who cited the federal Hatch Act, which explicitly prohibits government officials from using their positions to influence an election. Wakeford argued that Meadows saw “no distinction” between his White House responsibilities and the Trump campaign.