Former President Donald Trump has been barred from the ballot in Colorado’s presidential election next year, as determined by the state’s Supreme Court on Tuesday, citing his role in the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol by his supporters.
It’s reported that the ruling establishes a historic precedent by designating Trump as the inaugural presidential candidate in U.S. history deemed ineligible for the White House.
This decision is grounded in an infrequently used provision of the U.S. Constitution, barring officials involved in “insurrection or rebellion” from holding office.
The court, as reported by the news agency, has concluded that the U.S. Constitution forbids the frontrunner for the 2024 Republican nomination from being included on the ballot because of his involvement in inciting violence against the U.S. government.
The ruling’s scope is limited to the state’s March 5 Republican primary, but its consequences are likely to impact Trump’s eligibility for the Nov. 5 general election. Nonpartisan U.S. election forecasters categorizing Colorado as safely Democratic suggest that President Joe Biden is likely to win the state regardless of Trump’s position.
The case was brought by a group of Colorado voters, aided by the group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, who argued that Trump should be disqualified for inciting his supporters to attack the Capitol in a failed attempt to obstruct the transfer of presidential power to Biden after the 2020 election.
Read also: Capitol: Colorado Judge Finds Trump Guilty Of Insurrection
Trump’s campaign called the court decision “flawed” and “undemocratic,” and said it would be appealed.
‘The Colorado Supreme Court issued a completely flawed decision tonight and we will swiftly file an appeal to the United States Supreme Court and a concurrent request for a stay of this deeply undemocratic decision,’ a spokesperson from the Trump campaign said.
Trump’s campaign has denounced challenges under the 14th Amendment, alleging that they aim to deprive millions of voters of their desired presidential candidate.
This ruling constitutes a win for advocacy groups and anti-Trump voters who have waged multiple legal challenges to Trump’s candidacy under section 3 of the 14th Amendment, enacted in the post-Civil War era.
The decision overturns a lower court judge’s ruling, which concluded that Trump incited insurrection by urging his supporters to violence. However, the lower court judge deemed Trump, as president, not an “officer of the United States” eligible for disqualification under the amendment.
Trump’s lawyer asserted that the Capitol riot lacked the seriousness required for classification as an insurrection and that Trump’s statements to supporters in Washington were covered by his right to free speech. The lawyer contended that courts lack the authority to mandate Trump’s removal from the ballot.
This case is viewed by advocates as a chance to bolster a larger disqualification campaign and potentially elevate the issue to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Trump’s influence is evident in the U.S. Supreme Court’s conservative majority, which stands at 6-3, featuring three justices appointed by him.
The Colorado court has announced that the ruling is temporarily suspended until January 4, 2024, to facilitate the possibility of appeals.
‘The court’s decision today affirms what our clients alleged in this lawsuit: that Donald Trump is an insurrectionist who disqualified himself from office under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment based on his role in the January 6th attack on the Capitol, and that Secretary Griswold must keep him off of Colorado’s primary ballot. It is not only historic and justified, but is necessary to protect the future of democracy in our country,’ said CREW President, Noah Bookbinder.