The Supreme Court of the US state of Colorado banned Trump from participating in the elections
Date: 2023-12-20 Author: Кирило Загоруйко Categories: WORLD
In the US, the Colorado Supreme Court removed former President Donald Trump from the state's 2024 ballot, ruling that he was not a qualified presidential candidate due to the 14th Amendment's "insurrection ban."
The decision will be suspended until January 4, pending an appeal to the US Supreme Court, which could decide the issue, CNN writes.
The state Supreme Court's decision affects only Colorado, but the landmark decision could impact the 2024 presidential campaign. Colorado election officials said the issue must be resolved by Jan. 5, the legal deadline for the GOP primary field.
"President Trump didn't just incite an insurrection. Even as the siege of the Capitol was in full swing, he continued to support it, repeatedly demanding that Vice President (Mike) Pence abdicate his constitutional duty and calling senators to urge them to stop counting votes." in the elections. These actions amounted to open, voluntary and direct participation in the insurrection," the majority wrote in its opinion.
If the case reaches the US Supreme Court, the verdict will be binding on all states.
"We conclude that the foregoing evidence, the overwhelming majority of which was undisputed at trial, established that President Trump participated in the insurrection," the opinion adds.
"President Trump's direct and overt efforts over several months to encourage his supporters to march to the Capitol to prevent what he has falsely characterized as an alleged fraud on the people of this country were undeniably open and voluntary," it added.
Additionally, the court rejected Trump's free speech claims, writing: "President Trump's speech on January 6 was not protected by the First Amendment."
The Trump campaign says it will "quickly appeal" the Colorado Supreme Court's decision.
"Tonight the Colorado Supreme Court issued a completely wrong decision, and we will immediately file an appeal to the United States Supreme Court and a concurrent request for a stay of this deeply undemocratic decision. We have every confidence that the United States Supreme Court will quickly rule in our favor and finally put an end to this non-U.S. lawsuits," Trump campaign spokesman Stephen Cheng said.
