Special counsel Jack Smith in a filing on Thursday requested a July 8 trial start date in the federal criminal case over former President Trump's handling of classified documents.

Why it matters: Trump, the 2024 GOP presidential frontrunner, has leveraged delay tactics across the four criminal indictments he is facing, while publicly casting himself as a victim, in an effort to push proceedings past the election.

• Smith's filing comes before the judge overseeing the case is set to hold a hearing Friday on issues including the trial schedule, which is currently slated to begin in May.

The other side: Trump's team in a separate filing on Thursday requested that the trial be postponed until after the 2024 election, but proposed an Aug. 12 start date as an alternative.

• "As the leading candidate in the 2024 election, President Trump strongly asserts that a fair trial cannot be conducted this year in a manner consistent with the Constitution," his attorneys wrote.