UPDATE:
The Trump campaign announced it will swiftly appeal the Colorado Supreme Court's ruling removing the former president from the state's 2024 ballot to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Trump's leading allies have responded to the decision with fire and fury on social media:
ORIGINAL ARTICLE:
The Colorado Supreme Court has ruled to remove Donald Trump from the 2024 state ballot, citing the 14th Amendment's so-called insurrection clause.
The ruling has been temporarily stayed by the state's highest court. It is subject to further appellate proceedings.
An appeal is all but certain, as CNBC reports:
The ruling is the first time a state court has agreed that Trump, who is the front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination, should be barred from ballots in a state because of a U.S. constitutional provision barring people who have engaged in “insurrection” from federal office.
Courts in Minnesota and Michigan have rejected similar suits challenging Trump's placement on the presidential ballot, but the issue is continuing to be litigated in a number of states.
A group of six Colorado voters in September sued to block Trump from state ballots in 2024 because of a claim he was barred due to a provision in the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
That provision, Section 3, says that “no person” can serve as an officer of the United States who, having previously taken an oath of federal office, “engaged in insurrection or rebellion” against the U.S.
A Colorado judge ruled last month that Trump must be allowed on next year's Republican primary ballot. District Judge Sarah Wallace said in her ruling that the language in the 14th Amendment means it can't be used to prevent Trump from appearing on the ballot. Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), which filed the lawsuit on behalf of six Colorado voters, appealed Wallace's decision to the Colorado Supreme Court.
The disqualification trial focused on Trump's actions before and during the U.S. Capitol riot and whether they violated Section 3 of the 14th Amendment. Section 3 states:
No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice-President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States, or under any State, who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any State legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any State, to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability
This is a breaking news story. Please check back for updates.
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