20th December, 2023
Colorado Supreme Court has ruled that former U.S. President Donald Trump cannot run for presidential election in the State next year citing insurrection as the reason.
In a 4-3 judgement, the court ruled that Trump was not an eligible candidate because he had engaged in an insurrection over the US Capitol riot nearly three years ago.
The ruling will be placed on hold until January 4, pending Trump’s appeal to the US Supreme Court, which could settle the matter for the nation.
The Trump campaign, which said it would swiftly appeal, described the ruling as “a completely flawed decision.”
Trump denies wrongdoing regarding January 6 and has decried the 14th Amendment lawsuits as an abuse of the legal process.
He is under federal and state indictment in connection with his attempts to overturn the 2020 election – and he has pleaded not guilty.
The CNN reports that on the campaign trail, Trump has derided the lawsuits and argued that they are an attempt to use the courts to stop him from returning to the White House while he is the front-runner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination.
According to the 14th Amendment, Ratified after the Civil War, officials who take an oath to support the Constitution are banned from future office if they “engaged in insurrection.”
The CNN said the wording is vague, it doesn’t explicitly mention the presidency, and has only been applied twice since 1919.
