Former President Trump on Tuesday appealed in state court a decision to exclude him from Maine's primary ballot, beginning the next phase of a major 14th Amendment lawsuit.
Maine Secretary of State Shena Bellows (D) disqualified President Trump last week, making Maine the second state to disqualify him under the 14th Amendment's insurrection statute. It became.
Trump's appeal to Kennebec County Superior Court begins an expedited resolution timeline set out in state law.
The controversy could eventually reach the U.S. Supreme Court, which is already fighting the 14th Amendment case that excluded Trump from Colorado's primary ballot.
In Maine, judges must decide the case within 20 days of the Dec. 28 Bellows decision. The Bellows ruling is on hold until then, during which time Trump's name will remain on Maine ballots. The Maine primary election will be held on Super Tuesday, March 5th.
Former President Donald Trump speaks at a rally in Reno, Nevada, Sunday, Dec. 17, 2023. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vazquez)
The losing party could then appeal to the Maine Supreme Court, which state law gives them two weeks to issue a decision.
The dispute could then reach the Supreme Court.
“When Maine's Secretary of State made the decision to remove President Trump's name from the ballot, interfere in the election, and disenfranchise voters in the state,” Trump campaign spokesman Stephen Chan said. He completely ignored the Constitution and overstepped his authority.” statement.
So far, only Maine and Colorado have taken the unusual step of removing Trump's name from their ballots, but the plaintiffs have filed 20 14th Amendment lawsuits against Trump's candidacy across the country. The above objections have been filed.
The amendment prohibits a person from holding any public office under the United States if he or she “participates in an insurrection” after taking an oath to support the Constitution.
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The anti-Trump plaintiffs cite the then-President's actions surrounding the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, arguing that he incited the riot and is not fit to return to the White House. The lawsuit also centers on several threshold questions, including whether the amendment applies to the presidency and whether state courts and authorities have the authority to enforce its provisions.
“I note that the Secretary of State has never before deprived a presidential candidate of the right to vote under Section 3 of the Fourteenth Amendment. We also note that there has been no insurrection,” Bellows wrote in the decision.
Trump's new filing not only claims he was not involved in the insurrection, but also claims that Bellows does not have the authority under state law to remove Trump's name and that he will not be involved in the insurrection anyway. They also argue that the provision does not apply to the president's office and would require Congressional legislation to make it enforceable.
“Even if Maine law empowered the Secretary under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment to consider challenges to President Trump’s candidacy (which it did not), the Secretary There is no possibility that he erred as a matter of law in failing to properly consider the provisions of this article,” Trump's lawyers wrote in the filing.
Mr. Trump and his campaign have widely attacked the ruling and Mr. Bellows himself, and Mr. Trump's lawyers asked the secretary of state to retract the ruling the day before it was handed down.
“Make no mistake about it, the Secretary is a partisan Democrat and former executive of the ACLU who will abuse her power to help her favorite candidate, Crooked Joe Biden, steal the 2024 election. We are determined to do so,” Chan said in a statement. “President Trump is fighting against malicious attempts to destroy American democracy and looks forward to victory both in state court and in this November's presidential election. It's time to make America great again. !”
President Trump has not yet appealed Colorado's decision, but is expected to do so soon. The Colorado Republican Party has already filed a separate appeal.
Updated at 5:30 p.m.
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