Supreme Court Ruling: States Lack Authority to Bar Donald Trump from Ballot
The Supreme Court issued a ruling on Monday stating that states lack the authority to bar former President Donald Trump from appearing on the ballot due to his involvement in the January 6, 2021, Capitol attacks.
In an unsigned opinion, a majority of the justices asserted that only Congress, not individual states, possesses the power to enforce Section 3 of the 14th Amendment.
This amendment was established after the Civil War to disqualify individuals from holding office if they previously served in the federal or state government before supporting the Confederacy.
Supreme Court rules that Colorado can't disqualify Trump from the ballot. "States may disqualify persons holding or attempting to hold state office. But States have no power under the Constitution to enforce Section 3 with respect to federal offices, especially the Presidency."
— Caitlyn Kim (@caitlynkim) March 4, 2024
Source: Twitter/Caitlyn Kim
Court Decision Impacts Super Tuesday
The unanimous decision by all nine justices concluded that Colorado could not remove Trump from the ballot. However, four justices, including Justice Amy Coney Barrett in a separate opinion and Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, and Ketanji Brown Jackson in a joint opinion, argued that the Supreme court should have halted at this point without further deliberation.
Background and Legal Dispute
The legal dispute originated in a Colorado state court last year, where a group of voters contended that Trump was ineligible for the ballot under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment.
The state trial court acknowledged that Donald Trump had "engaged in insurrection" but declined the voters' request to remove him from the ballot. The case was then appealed to the Colorado Supreme Court, which ruled in favor of disqualification but suspended its ruling to provide Trump an opportunity to appeal to the Supreme Court.
Court’s Rationale and Majority Opinion
In a 13-page unsigned opinion released early Monday, the justices reversed the Colorado Supreme Court's decision. They emphasized that while the 14th Amendment intended to expand federal authority at the states' expense, Section 3's enforcement is solely within Congress's purview.
The court stressed that before disqualifying someone under Section 3, a determination must be made, a power bestowed upon Congress by Section 5 of the 14th Amendment.
Concurring Opinions and Dissent
Justice Barrett concurred in part, emphasizing that states cannot enforce Section 3 against presidential candidates. However, she criticized the Supreme court's involvement in deciding how Section 3 should be enforced.
Justices Sotomayor, Kagan, and Jackson concurred with the outcome but disagreed with the majority's rationale, arguing that the court exceeded its jurisdiction in delineating how Section 3 should bar individuals from the presidency.
Implications and Future Cases
Monday's ruling impacts similar cases in Maine and Illinois, where Trump's eligibility for the ballot was questioned. The decision arrives shortly after the Supreme court agreed to hear another case concerning Trump's alleged conspiracy to overturn the 2020 election results.
Arguments for this case are scheduled for late April, with a decision expected by June or July.
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