Supreme Court Agrees To Weigh In On Whether Donald Trump Can Be Kept Off Of State Ballots
06.01.2024 - 00:59
/ deadline.com
The Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case on whether former President Donald Trump can be kept off state ballots.
The justices have set Feb. 8 for oral arguments in Trump’s challenge of a Colorado Supreme Court ruling that found him ineligible for the state primary ballot.
The Colorado judges concluded that Trump was in violation of a clause of the 14th Amendment, which prohibits those who have taken an oath from holding office if they have engaged in an insurrection.
Trump’s attorneys also are challenging the Maine secretary of state’s decision to keep him off that state’s ballot.
The U.S. Supreme Court’s willingness to take the case means that the high court justices are poised to have a major say in the dynamics of the 2024 presidential race. They also may ultimately decide whether Trump has immunity from prosecution over alleged crimes he committed while president. That case stems from Trump’s indictment on charges that he conspired to remain in power after the 2020 election, leading to the January 6th attack on the Capitol.
The Supreme Court set a timeline for the Colorado case, with Trump attorneys’ briefs due Jan. 18, responses due Jan. 31, and reply briefs due on Feb. 5.
Section 3 of the 14th Amendment says that “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