Keep Factually independent
Whether you agree or disagree with our analysis, these conversations matter for democracy. We don't take money from political groups - even a $5 donation helps us keep it that way.
How many commutations has President Trump granted compared to pardons?
Executive summary
Available reporting shows President Trump has issued far more pardons than commutations since returning to office in 2025: multiple outlets describe large blanket pardon actions—one batch pardoned roughly 1,000–1,500 January 6 defendants and later lists of dozens more including a 77-person proclamation—while commutations are repeatedly described as far fewer in number (examples: ~14 commutations in one early action versus thousands of pardons overall) [1] [2] [3].
1. Big numbers, big headlines: mass pardons versus limited commutations
Journalists emphasize that the clemency story of Trump’s second term has been dominated by large pardon proclamations: one of his first acts was to pardon roughly 1,000–1,500 people charged in the January 6 attack (reported by The Guardian and others), and later proclamations covered dozens more allies accused of trying to overturn the 2020 election, including a documented list of 77 named people [1] [3] [4]. By contrast, reporting and compiled lists note commutations in much smaller totals—one source records about 14 commutations tied to the January 20, 2025 action and other outlets count commutations in the low dozens overall [2] [1].
2. How reporters and officials distinguish pardons from commutations
Coverage consistently reminds readers of the legal difference: a pardon erases the legal penalties of a federal conviction, while a commutation shortens or cancels a sentence but leaves the conviction on the record [5] [6]. Outlets use that distinction to highlight the political effect of Trump’s choices—pardons can fully clear someone of federal disability, whereas commutations primarily affect incarceration.
3. Official tallies and watchdog counts differ, and datasets are evolving
The Justice Department’s Office of the Pardon Attorney publishes clemency grants, but multiple outlets and aggregators — including Wikipedia lists and legal summaries — are actively updating counts as new proclamations and ad hoc pardons appear [7] [8] [2]. Independent reporting and advocacy groups have produced alternate tallies (including counts focused on “political allies” or “corrupt politicians”), which sometimes emphasize different subsets (e.g., federal elected officials versus January 6 defendants) [9] [10].
4. Media narratives: political motives and patterns flagged across outlets
Coverage from The Guardian, Reuters, Forbes and others converges on a pattern: many pardons have gone to political allies, donors and supporters, prompting critique that clemency has been used to reward loyalty [1] [3] [11]. Some outlets also note the installation of a politically aligned Pardon Attorney, Ed Martin, and the dismissal or removal of a career official, framing part of the story as a shift in vetting and priorities at the Justice Department [8] [1].
5. Disagreements and limits in the record
Sources disagree on exact totals and on characterization: one New Yorker piece places cumulative pardons and commutations across terms in the hundreds and then thousands, while an Eisenhower-era-style DOJ list gives official entries that reporters then interpret [12] [7]. Available sources do not provide a single, definitive side‑by‑side numeric table comparing total pardons vs total commutations across both of Trump’s presidencies; instead, journalists compile and update counts as proclamations are issued and as the Justice Department posts documentation [2] [7].
6. What a precise answer would require and where to look next
To get an authoritative current tally you need the Justice Department’s clemency database plus the most recent proclamation texts—Ed Martin’s Pardon Attorney announcements and DOJ postings are the primary official records to consult [7] [8]. Reporting outlets (Reuters, CNN, AP, The Guardian) and compiled lists (Wikipedia, specialty trackers) provide useful cross-checks for headline actions such as the January 20, 2025 mass pardons and the November 2025 batches [1] [3] [2].
7. Bottom line for readers
Based on available reporting, pardons vastly outnumber commutations in Trump’s 2025-era clemency activity: the clearest examples are mass pardons (roughly 1,000–1,500 Jan. 6-related pardons early in the term and later batches covering dozens more, including a 77-person proclamation) while commutations are reported in much smaller quantities such as the ~14 tied to an early action and isolated individual commutations like George Santos’s in October 2025 [2] [1] [5]. For an up-to-the-minute numeric comparison, consult the DOJ Office of the Pardon Attorney’s clemency grants page and corroborating reporting [7].