POLITICS
What other states are now trying to remove Donald Trump from their 2024 ballots?
A Colorado court has removed Donald Trump from the 2024 ballot. Which other states are making this legal argument?
Donald Trump, currently the leading candidate for the Republican presidential nomination for the 2024 election, has faced a major legal challenge after the Colorado Supreme Court ruled that he is ineligible to run in the state. The court’s decision was based on their interpretation of the 14th Amendment to the US Constitution, which was ratified on July 9th, 1868. The amendment deals with citizenship, equal protection under the law, and due process. Specifically, Section 3 of the 14th Amendment states that anyone engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the US government is disqualified from holding public office.
In response, another candidate in the race, Vivek Ramaswamy, said that he would withdraw from the Colorado GOP primary if Donald Trump is barred from the ballot.
Cases to remove Donald Trump are pending in twelve states
Colorado is one of several states testing this legal theory to have Donald Trump removed from the ballot. However, the cases are likely to be sent to the Supreme Court, which will make the financial decision as to whether or not such a move is constitutional. According to Lawfare, cases are pending in New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Nevada, Oregon, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. Over the coming months, these cases will be decided, and the former president could see his name removed from more consequential states.
Lawyers in Florida, Minnesota, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island, making the argument that was able to have the former presidnet removed in Colorado, were dismissed. The decision from New Hampshire stated that the plaintiff, John Anthony Castro, had not “established that he has or will suffer a political competitive injury arising from Trump’s participation in the” state’s primary.
Castro, the plaintiff in many cases being presented across the country, is running for president as a Republican, and these lawsuits to keep Trump off the ballot increase his electoral chances. In California, Connecticut, Delaware, Idaho, Maine, Massachusetts, Montana, Kansas, North Carolina, Oklahoma, and Pennsylvania, Castro has withdrawn the case.