Maine’s Secretary of State Shenna Bellows is following in the footsteps of the Colorado Supreme Court which recently ruled that the republican party’s ex-President Donald Trump was disqualified from being on Colorado’s presidential primary ballots, based on the wording of the 14th amendment, section 3. This law which passed in 1868, disqualifies any office holder from seeking any elected governmental position, if he or she participated in an insurrection. This 1868 amendment had been enacted in response to what had happened, beginning in 1861 when several politicians were barred from elected governmental offices because of their participation in the Civil War.
Maine’s Secretary, a Democrat, concluded that Trump, the current front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination in almost all states, incited an insurrection when he spread false claims about voter fraud in the 2020 election and then prompted his supporters to march on the US Capitol to stop lawmakers from certifying the vote on January 6, 2021.
Other states with laws that don’t allow for the baring of candidates on primary presidential ballots, have not made similar rulings but this could change when the general election starts. Primary elections for each state, all with differing election laws, are set up for its voters of established political parties to nominate a candidate to represent them in their state in the general election.
As per the December 29, 2023 New York Times report, “Trump Ballot Challenges: What to Know”
Excerpts:
“In Michigan and Minnesota, the courts have ruled that election officials cannot prevent the Republican Party from including Mr. Trump on their primary ballots. But both decisions left the door open for new challenges to bar him from the general election ballot.”
“There are active lawsuits in 14 states, according to a database maintained by Lawfare, a website about legal and national security issues.”
“Those states are: Alaska, Arizona, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, South Carolina, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming. (A judge has dismissed the Arizona suit but the dismissal is being appealed.)”
In the near future, the US Supreme Court justices will probably be faced with reviewing the Colorado’s Supreme Court’s recent ruling based on section 3 of the 14th amendment.
This game changing decision by Maine’s secretary to unilaterally abide by the 14th amendment, section 3 as per the recent Colorado Supreme Court’s decision, to keep the republican MAGA US ex-president off its primary ballot makes it more difficult for the US Supreme Court conservative justices to figure out an intellectually defensible reason to not affirm the Colorado ruling that disqualifies the ex-president from vying for the role to be next US president based on his being party to an insurrection. Both states have held keeping the ex-president off the ballot in abeyance until the US Supreme Court weighs in on this subject.
As per the December 28, 2023 Guardian report, “Maine disqualifies Trump from presidential primary ballot, citing insurrection clause:
“Maine’s secretary of state has removed Donald Trump from the state’s presidential primary ballot under the insurrection clause of the US constitution.”
“The move follows a recent decision made by Colorado’s supreme court to remove Trump from the state’s primary ballot, citing the same constitutional cause and setting up a legal showdown at the US supreme court.”
“Maine’s election official is the first to take action unilaterally, and the move has potential electoral college consequences.”
“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.”
“The decision by the secretary of state, Shenna Bellows, follows a December ruling by the Colorado supreme court that booted Trump from the ballot there.”
“Both the Maine decision and the Colorado decision are based on section 3 of the 14th amendment, which bans from office those who “engaged in insurrection.”
As per a December 28, 2023 New York Times report, “Maine Joins Colorado in Finding Trump Ineligible for Primary Ballot” by Jenna Russell and Ernesto Londono:
“In a written decision, the official, Secretary of State Shenna Bellows, said that Mr. Trump did not qualify for the ballot because of his role in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, agreeing with a handful of citizens who claimed that he had incited an insurrection and was thus barred from seeking the presidency again under the 14th Amendment of the Constitution.”
“I am mindful that no secretary of state has ever deprived a presidential candidate of ballot access based on Section 3 of the 14th Amendment. I am also mindful, however, that no presidential candidate has ever before engaged in insurrection.,” Ms. Bellows, a Democrat, wrote.”
“Last week, Colorado’s Supreme Court ruled in a 4 to 3 decision that the former president should not be allowed to appear on that state’s Republican primary ballot.”
This blog was written on 12/28/2023 and updated on 12/29/2023.
Gronda Morin 