Current:Home > MarketsMaine bars Trump from ballot as US Supreme Court weighs state authority to block former president-InfoLens
Maine bars Trump from ballot as US Supreme Court weighs state authority to block former president
View
Date:2024-12-23 11:24:38
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Maine’s Democratic secretary of state on Thursday removed former President Donald Trump from the state’s presidential primary ballot under the Constitution’s insurrection clause, becoming the first election official to take action unilaterally as the U.S. Supreme Court is poised to decide whether Trump remains eligible to continue his campaign.
The decision by Secretary of State Shenna Bellows follows a December ruling by the Colorado Supreme Court that booted Trump from the ballot there under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment. That decision has been stayed until the U.S. Supreme Court decides whether Trump is barred by the Civil War-era provision, which prohibits those who “engaged in insurrection” from holding office.
The Trump campaign said it would appeal Bellows’ decision to Maine’s state court system, and it is likely that the nation’s highest court will have the final say on whether Trump appears on the ballot there and in the other states.
Bellows found that Trump could no longer run for his prior job because his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol violated Section 3, which bans from office those who “engaged in insurrection.” Bellows made the ruling after some state residents, including a bipartisan group of former lawmakers, challenged Trump’s position on the ballot.
“I do not reach this conclusion lightly,” Bellows wrote in her 34-page decision. “I am mindful that no Secretary of State has ever deprived a presidential candidate of ballot access based on Section 3 of the Fourteenth Amendment. I am also mindful, however, that no presidential candidate has ever before engaged in insurrection.”
The Trump campaign immediately slammed the ruling. “We are witnessing, in real-time, the attempted theft of an election and the disenfranchisement of the American voter,” campaign spokesman Steven Cheung said in a statement.
Thursday’s ruling demonstrates the need for the nation’s highest court, which has never ruled on Section 3, to clarify what states can do.
While Maine has just four electoral votes, it’s one of two states to split them. Trump won one of Maine’s electors in 2020, so having him off the ballot there should he emerge as the Republican general election candidate could have outsized implications in a race that is expected to be narrowly decided.
That’s in contrast to Colorado, which Trump lost by 13 percentage points in 2020 and where he wasn’t expected to compete in November if he wins the Republican presidential nomination.
In her decision, Bellows acknowledged that the Supreme Court will probably have the final word but said it was important she did her official duty. That won her praise from a group of prominent Maine voters who filed the petition forcing her to consider the case.
“Secretary Bellows showed great courage in her ruling, and we look forward to helping her defend her judicious and correct decision in court. No elected official is above the law or our constitution, and today’s ruling reaffirms this most important of American principles,” Republican Kimberly Rosen, independent Thomas Saviello and Democrat Ethan Strimling said in a statement.
veryGood! (6182)
Related
- Maine dams face an uncertain future
- The Israel-Hamas war has roiled US campuses. Students on each side say colleges aren’t doing enough
- Teacher killed in France knife attack as country on high alert over Israel-Hamas war
- Is it a good idea to have a Roth 401(k)? Why it may be better than a Roth IRA, for some.
- ‘COP Fatigue’: Experts Warn That Size and Spectacle of Global Climate Summit Is Hindering Progress
- Thieves steal $2,000 in used cooking oil from Chick-fil-A over the past few months
- The Israel-Hamas war has roiled US campuses. Students on each side say colleges aren’t doing enough
- Buffalo Bills running back Damien Harris leaves field in ambulance after suffering neck injury in Giants game
- Republican Vos reelected as Wisconsin Assembly speaker despite losing seats, fights with Trump
- Surfer suffers leg injury in possible shark attack at beach near San Francisco, police say
Ranking
- Taylor Swift Becomes Auntie Tay In Sweet Photo With Fellow Chiefs WAG Chariah Gordon's Daughter
- Windy conditions cancel farewell mass ascension at Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta
- Huge turnout in Poland's decisive election, highest since 1919
- Jewish people around the world grieve and pray for peace in first Shabbat services since Hamas attack
- How to Build Your Target Fall Capsule Wardrobe: Budget-Friendly Must-Haves for Effortless Style
- Connecticut postmaster pleads guilty to fraud in $875,000 bribery scheme with maintenance vendor
- Buffalo Bills running back Damien Harris leaves field in ambulance after suffering neck injury in Giants game
- Alex Rodriguez Shares Rare Insight into Romance With Girlfriend Jaclyn Cordeiro
Recommendation
Ranked voting will decide a pivotal congressional race. How does that work?
Adidas, Ivy Park have released the final installment of their collaboration. What to know
Pakistani forces clash with militants and kill 6 fighters during a raid in the northwest
Many frustrated Argentines pinning hopes on firebrand populist Javier Milei in presidential race
After Baltimore mass shooting, neighborhood goes full year with no homicides
Mary Lou Retton's Family Shares Remarkable Update Amid Gymnast's Battle With Rare Illness
'Netflix houses', where fans can immerse themselves in their favorite shows, will open in US by 2025
Wisconsin Supreme Court asked to draw new legislative boundaries over Republican objections