Colorado voters ask U.S. Supreme Court to weigh in on Trump's eligibility for office
Published Date: 1/3/2024
Source: axios.com

Former President Trump on Tuesday appealed the landmark ruling from Maine that disqualified him from the state's 2024 presidential ballot.

The big picture: Lawyers for Trump in a filing accused Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows (D) of "bias" and urged the Kennebec Superior Court to vacate her ruling finding that the 14th Amendment's insurrection clause applies to the former president's actions surrounding the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.


  • Trump, who had indicated that he was going to appeal the ruling, is also expected to appeal the Colorado Supreme Court ruling last month that barred him from the ballot in that state due to the insurrection clause.
  • Both states' landmark decisions have been paused to allow the appeals process to play out.

State of play: Bellows maintains politics and her personal views "played no role" in her decision. "I swore an oath to uphold the Constitution, and that is what I did," she told NPR over the weekend.

Meanwhile, in Colorado a group of voters who led the efforts to remove Trump from the state's ballot under the 14th Amendment asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday to weigh in on his eligibility.

  • "Whether the Fourteenth Amendment prohibits a former President (and current presidential primary front-runner) who engaged in insurrection against the Constitution from holding office again is a question of paramount national importance," lawyers for the group wrote in their petition to the court.
  • "Because 2024 presidential primary elections are imminent, there is no time or need to let these issues percolate further."
  • The Colorado Republican Party last week called on the U.S. high court to overturn the state court's ruling in a petition, arguing that the party "has been irreparably harmed."

What's next: The Maine superior court has until Jan. 17 to decide on the issue.

Go deeper: How the Supreme Court could affect the 2024 presidential election

Editor's note: This article has been updated with new details throughout.