The US Supreme Court agreed on Friday to take up the question of Donald Trump’s ineligibility, regarding a decision taken by Colorado which would prevent the former president from appearing on the ballot in that state.
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Directly involving itself in a highly political matter, the Supreme Court, with a conservative majority, announced that it would examine this case on February 8.
Until she makes her decision, ballots will still have to include Donald Trump’s name in Colorado as in Maine, another state that has made a similar decision.
Donald Trump, the big favorite in the Republican primaries for next November’s presidential election, asked the high court on Wednesday, which he has largely overhauled, to take up the matter.
At the end of December, the Colorado Supreme Court and then the Maine Secretary of State made the decision to ban Donald Trump from being a candidate in the Republican primaries in these states, historic decisions.
In both states, officials considered that the Republican billionaire could not return to the White House, ruling that the Republican engaged in acts of “insurrection” during the assault on the Capitol in 2021 and that he is therefore ineligible for the presidency, under the 14th Amendment to the Constitution.
This amendment, adopted after the American Civil War, excludes from public liability anyone, after having taken an oath to defend the Constitution, who engages in acts of “rebellion” or “insurrection”.
Does this amendment apply, in this context, to Donald Trump? This is the burning question that the court will have to answer.
According to Donald Trump and his lawyers, if the Colorado decision is upheld, it “will mark the first time in American history that the legal system has prevented voters from casting their ballots for a major party’s leading candidate for office.” presidential.
According to them, this competence lies only with the power of Congress.
Mr. Trump’s lawyers also argued in their motion that Section 3 of the amendment did not apply to him as president, that January 6 was not an “insurrection” and that the tycoon did not had “in no way participated in an insurrection.”
On January 6, 2021, hundreds of supporters of Donald Trump violently stormed the Capitol, the sanctuary of American democracy, to try to prevent the certification of the victory of his opponent, Joe Biden.
Donald Trump and his most fervent supporters still dispute, without proof, the results of the 2020 election.