Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft as other states seek to disqualify former President Trump from securing a second term over his actions during the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot. is threatening to remove President Biden from the election ballot.
The U.S. Supreme Court will decide whether Trump can participate in Colorado's Republican primary ballot after the state Supreme Court ruled that Trump could not participate due to the 14th Amendment's insurrection clause. is expected to be decided.
The high court sided with a lower court that ruled that Trump incited his supporters as Congress was certifying Biden's 2020 election victory. The Colorado Supreme Court's decision was the first in history to use Section 3 of the 14th Amendment to exclude a presidential candidate from the ballot.
Maine's secretary of state also ruled that Trump should be removed from the ballot for similar reasons. Mr. Trump is appealing that decision.
On Friday, Ashcroft, a Republican, called the efforts in Colorado and Maine “disgraceful” and “undermining our republic.”
“I hope the Supreme Court overturns this, but if not, the Secretary of State will step in and ensure that @realDonaldTrump's new legal standards apply to @JoeBiden as well. Roar!,” Ashcroft wrote to X.
“I'm not in favor of going down this path. But if we go down this path, unless the Supreme Court stops this, it's inevitable,” Ashcroft told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Told. “The rules apply equally. I just hope that doesn't become the rule in Colorado or Maine.”
Republicans have sharply criticized Democrats for trying to remove Trump from the 2024 presidential election ballot, arguing that it undermines the will of voters.
Last month, Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick proposed excluding Biden from the vote because of his handling of the southern border.
“When you look at what happened tonight in Colorado…it makes me think – other than we believe in democracy in Texas – 8 million people at the border since Joe Biden became president. Maybe it should be taken off the Texas ballot because it's allowing people to cross over and disrupting our state far more than anyone else has done in recent history, Patrick said on Fox News. He spoke during an interview with Laura Ingraham on “The Ingraham Angle.''
More than a dozen states, including Missouri, expressed support for Trump in a letter filed with the high court.
Fox News Digital has reached out to Ashcroft's office. Asked for comment, the White House press secretary said “no.”
