Colorado GOP Asks SCOTUS to Keep Trump on 2024 Ballot
The Colorado Republican Party, not quite happy with the unprecedented decision by the Colorado Supreme Court to disqualify Donald Trump from the state’s 2024 primary ballot, says it has asked the US Supreme Court to overturn the ruling and keep Donald Trump on its 2024 primary ballot on Wednesday.
The Colorado GOP asserts that excluding Trump from the ballot infringes upon its First Amendment right to select candidates for its primaries. The party’s legal representatives contend that the Colorado Supreme Court erroneously expanded the scope of the Constitution’s “insurrectionist ban” to include presidents, a move they assert only Congress has the authority to enforce.
The Colorado GOP filed its petition on Wednesday, alleging that the state court’s decision sets a dangerous precedent that other states might adopt, potentially affecting Trump’s candidacy nationwide. Similar challenges are pending in Maine and Oregon, with concerns raised about the replication of Colorado’s legal error in excluding Trump from the ballot.
In its December 19 ruling, the Colorado Supreme Court declared Trump constitutionally ineligible for the 2024 election due to his actions on January 6, 2021, invoking the 14th Amendment’s ban on insurrectionists holding public office. The court rejected arguments that the ban does not apply to presidents and that only Congress has the authority to enforce it.
The petition to the US Supreme Court comes amid a broader legal landscape involving Trump, as the high court is already engaged in matters related to his election subversion criminal case. The outcome of this appeal will extend the uncertainty surrounding Trump’s inclusion on the Colorado primary ballot until the US Supreme Court announces whether it will take up the case and subsequently issues a final decision.
The petition also extends the Colorado Supreme Court’s stay to its order that was due to expire on January 4 indefinitely, meaning that the former president’s and current GOP frontrunner — who was found by the court to have incited an insurrection on January 6, 2021 — can still appear on the ballot.
Critical deadlines are fast approaching: Colorado’s obligation to certify its primary ballot candidates is on January 5 and the primary is scheduled for March 5.
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