The Secretary of State of California has opted to keep former President Donald Trump on the state’s 2024 presidential primary ballot despite other states disqualifying him due to the 14th Amendment of the United States Constitution.
Two states have declared Trump ineligible: Colorado and Maine, with Colorado reversing its decision in anticipation of a Supreme Court decision.
Trump will be on California’s presidential primary ballot, which was announced on Thursday by the Democratic Secretary of State, Shirley Weber.
Related: State Of Maine Removes Trump From 2024 Ballot
Democratic candidate for governor of California in 2026, Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis, asked Weber in a public letter to look into all available avenues to remove Trump from the ballot following the Colorado ruling.
Though she did not state her choice at the time, Weber later replied to Kounalakis’ letter, stating that she is “a steward of free and fair elections and the democratic process.”
On Thursday, Maine’s top election official removed former President Donald Trump from the state’s 2024 ballot. This move is based on the interpretation of the 14th Amendment’s “insurrectionist ban.”
Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows, a Democrat, issued the decision after presiding over an administrative hearing on Trump’s eligibility for office. The challenge against Trump was filed by a bipartisan group of former state lawmakers.
It is worth noting that Bellows’ decision can be appealed in state court, and it is highly likely that Trump’s side will challenge this outcome.
“The Maine Secretary of State is a former ACLU attorney, a virulent leftist and a hyper-partisan Biden-supporting Democrat who has decided to interfere in the presidential election on behalf of Crooked Joe Biden. We are witnessing, in real-time, the attempted theft of an election and the disenfranchisement of the American voter. Democrats in blue states are recklessly and un-Constitutionally suspending the civil rights of the American voters by attempting to summarily remove President Trump’s name from the ballot. Make no mistake, these partisan election interference efforts are a hostile assault on American democracy. Biden and the Democrats simply do not trust the American voter in a free and fair election and are now relying on the force of government institutions to protect their grip on power,” said the Trump campaign following the decision.
State courts in Michigan and Minnesota have rejected the 14th Amendment ballot challenges, as have federal courts in New Hampshire, Arizona, Florida, Rhode Island, West Virginia, along with ten other federal jurisdictions.
The 14th Amendment was ratified after the Civil War and contains a provision stating that American officials who “engage in” insurrection cannot hold future office.
However, the amendment does not provide clear guidance on how this ban should be enforced. This lack of specificity has led to differing interpretations among legal experts and has created room for debate and legal challenges.
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