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How many women have testified publicly accusing Trump of sex related crimes
Executive summary
Reporting counts of women who have publicly accused Donald Trump of sexual misconduct varies across outlets: Wikipedia cites “at least 28” women [1], Business Insider and Vice report “about 26” [2] [3], and Axios and The Guardian place the tally near 27 [4] [5]. Available sources document disagreement over the precise number because outlets use different cutoffs, treat anonymous claims and civil findings differently, and update lists as new allegations emerge [1] [2] [4].
1. Different tallies, same phenomenon: why counts range from mid‑20s to high‑20s
News organizations and reference sites have published slightly different totals—Business Insider and Vice cite “26” women [2] [3], Axios reported “roughly 27” after a 2024 allegation [4], and Wikipedia’s rundown says “at least 28” [1]. These discrepancies reflect timing (new allegations or interviews are added), editorial criteria (whether to include anonymous plaintiffs or litigated but dismissed suits), and whether outlets count only allegations of assault versus broader claims of harassment or inappropriate conduct [2] [1].
2. What reporters are including when they compile lists
Some compilers emphasize allegations of non‑consensual sexual contact or assault; others include a wider range of misconduct such as leering, groping, or alleged attempts. For example, Business Insider framed its list around “sexual misconduct, including assault” and arrived at “at least 26” names [2]. Axios described Stacey Williams as joining “roughly 27” women amid contemporaneous reporting, signaling a dynamic list that grows with new public accounts [4]. Wikipedia aggregates long‑running claims back to the 1970s and therefore reports a higher floor—“at least 28”—because it consolidates many reported incidents [1].
3. Which claims resulted in court findings or lawsuits
Most accusations remain public allegations; relatively few were decided in court. The most legally consequential case documented in these sources is E. Jean Carroll’s civil matter: a jury found Trump liable for sexual abuse and defamation and ordered damages [6]. Multiple outlets note Carroll’s case as the exception in which a jury reached a civil finding tied to one of the allegations on these lists [6] [3].
4. How newsrooms treat anonymous or withdrawn claims
Outlets disagree about including anonymous plaintiffs or claims that were litigated and later dismissed or settled. Wikipedia’s long list includes lawsuits and complaints that in some instances were settled or withdrawn [1]. Business Insider and Vice focused on named women who publicly accused Trump and on those whose allegations were prominent in the 2016–2017 reporting wave and later compilations [2] [3]. Axios and The Guardian noted additions after new interviews surfaced [4] [5], showing that counts change as reporting uncovers more accounts.
5. Political and editorial contexts that shape lists
Compilations sometimes appear in broader pieces about Trump’s conduct, his relationship to figures like Jeffrey Epstein, or discussions of his personnel choices; those framings influence which accusations editors highlight and why [7] [5]. Outlets that emphasize systemic patterns or policy implications may count a broader set of interactions; others aiming for legal precision may limit lists to allegations meeting specific evidentiary or naming thresholds [7] [5].
6. What is not agreed or not covered in the sources
Available sources do not provide a single, authoritative official count certified by a neutral body; instead, the media record is a rolling compilation updated as new allegations are reported or litigated [1] [2] [4]. Sources do not agree on whether to treat settled or withdrawn suits as equivalent to public accusations, which explains the modest numerical differences among outlets [1] [2].
7. How to interpret these figures responsibly
When you see numbers—26, 27, 28—treat them as approximate snapshots of public reporting rather than final tallies. The differences in counting methodology, timing, and inclusion criteria drive variation across reputable outlets [2] [4] [1]. For legal status, rely on court records (for example, the Carroll verdict) rather than aggregate lists; for the broader pattern, consult multiple compilations to see which names are consistently reported across outlets [6] [3].
If you want, I can extract the names listed by a specific outlet (Business Insider, Wikipedia, Axios or The Guardian) and show which allegations were litigated, settled, dismissed, or remain public allegations according to that source.