Former US President Donald Trump took his seat Monday at a Manhattan court for the start of jury selection in his hush money trial.

The court is in the process of selecting 12 jurors in order for the trial to begin.

But more than 50 prospective jurors were excused on Monday after they said they could not be fair and impartial to the controversial former president.

The historic criminal case stems from a hush-money payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels. It could keep him in court for weeks and complicate his bid to win back the White House.

Trump is the first former US president to face a criminal trial, which could last through May. He is required to attend the trial in Manhattan four days a week (the trial does not take place on Wednesdays).

At the outset of court proceedings, Judge Juan Merchan, who is overseeing the trial, denied a request by the defense team to recuse himself from the case. Jury selection is expected to take about a week, followed by testimony.

What did Trump say?

Upon arriving at the courthouse, the former president denounced the trial as an "assault on America."

"This is political persecution," Trump said before entering the courtroom and taking his seat at the defense table alongside his attorneys, wearing his signature blue suit and red tie.

"Nothing like this has ever happened before," he added. "There is no case."

He repeated his sentiments on leaving the courtroom, saying "It's a scam. It's a political witch hunt."

Earlier, Trump himself called the case and other indictments elsewhere a broad "weaponization of law enforcement" by Democratic prosecutors and officials.

What do we know about the jury?

All 12 jurors will be granted anonymity in order to protect them from what the judge said was a risk of bribery and even physical harm.

However, none were selected on Monday.

More than half of the 96 prospective jurors who were sworn in were excused for various reasons.

"I just couldn't do it" said one of the excused jury candidates as she left court.

Those who remained were grilled about their education, hobbies and news consumption.

The process of selecting a jury could last for as long as two weeks, according to Trump's lawyers.

What is the hush money trial about?

Trump is accused of falsifying business records in a scheme to cover up an alleged sexual encounter with adult film actress Stormy Daniels to protect his 2016 campaign from a last-minute upset.

The charges center on $130,000 (€122,000) in payments that Trump's company made to his then-lawyer, Michael Cohen. He had paid that sum on Trump's behalf to keep an actress from going public with her claims of a sexual encounter with the married mogul a decade earlier.

Prosecutors say the payments to Cohen were falsely recorded as legal fees to hide their true purpose. Trump's lawyers say the payments were in fact legal expenses, not a cover-up.

Cohen was sentenced to three years in prison in December 2018 after pleading guilty to campaign finance charges and lying to Congress, among other crimes. He is also among the witnesses expected to testify in Trump's hush-money trial.

zc, dh/wd (Reuters, AP, AFP)