Former US President and 2024 presidential aspirant, Donald Trump, is intensifying his legal fight by appealing to the US Supreme Court, seeking to overturn rulings from Colorado and Maine that bar him from primary ballots. The move comes as part of a broader strategy to secure his place as the leading contender for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination.
In the Colorado case, the state’s highest court disqualified Trump from the Republican primary ballot, citing his involvement in the January 6, 2021 Capitol assault. Trump’s legal team, in a detailed 43-page submission to the Supreme Court, contends that the decision sets a dangerous precedent by allowing state courts to interfere with voters’ choices for a major-party presidential candidate. They argue that such matters should be exclusively within the purview of Congress.
Simultaneously, Trump is challenging a ruling by Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows, a Democrat, who determined he is ineligible for the primary ballot in the northeastern state. Trump’s lawyers accuse Bellows of bias, asserting that her decision was arbitrary and capricious.
Both the Colorado and Maine decisions rely on the 14th Amendment to the US Constitution, specifically Section Three, which disqualifies individuals engaged in “insurrection or rebellion” from holding public office. The 14th Amendment, enacted in 1868 after the Civil War, aimed to prevent former Confederacy supporters from holding federal positions.
Similar eligibility challenges under the 14th Amendment have been filed in other states, with varying outcomes. Notably, courts in Minnesota and Michigan recently ruled in favor of Trump, allowing him to remain on the ballot.
As Trump faces legal battles on multiple fronts, including an upcoming trial in Washington for alleged conspiracy to overturn the 2020 election results and racketeering charges in Georgia, the March 5 presidential nominating contests in Maine and Colorado, known as “Super Tuesday,” loom large. The outcomes of these legal maneuvers will significantly impact Trump’s path to securing the Republican nomination in 2024.
