Trump calls for charges against Democrat Hakeem Jeffries over remarks on redistricting

United States President Donald Trump has called for criminal charges against House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries, accusing the top Democrat of "incitement to violence".

The comments mark the latest escalation in Trump's use of legal threats against political opponents.

Trump made the demand in a social media post on Thursday, linking Jeffries' recent remarks to a shooting incident at the White House correspondents' dinner.

He shared an image pairing Jeffries with the phrase "Maximum warfare everywhere all the time" alongside a picture of the alleged gunman.

Jeffries' comments were made in the context of the partisan fight over redistricting, not political violence.

In a news conference on April 22, he praised a Virginia vote on an electoral map that favours Democrats and accused Republicans of launching a "gerrymandering war".

The dispute matters because Trump has been pressing Republican officials in several states to redraw US House maps in ways that would help his party keep control of the chamber in the November midterm elections.

Jeffries has said Democrats will respond in states they control, including Virginia and California.

Trump has already succeeded in pushing for criminal charges against other political opponents, including New York Attorney General Letitia James and former FBI Director James Comey.

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