A longtime pollster claimed that the Colorado Supreme Court’s ruling to remove former President Donald Trump from the ballot will backfire on Democrats.
A divided Colorado Supreme Court on Tuesday declared he is ineligible for the White House under the U.S. Constitution’s insurrection clause and removed him from the state’s presidential primary ballot, although the order was delayed amid an appeal. The move sets up a likely showdown in the U.S. Supreme Court to determine whether he can remain in the race.
The decision from a court whose justices were all appointed by Democrat governors marks the first time in history that Section 3 of the 14th Amendment has been used to disqualify a presidential candidate.
“A majority of the court holds that Trump is disqualified from holding the office of president under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment,” the court wrote in its 4–3 decision.
Other strategists and pollsters have noted that the former president has only seen his political favorability rise after legal setbacks.
He added that “Republicans see this in the same way they saw two impeachments, the indictments, the Russia investigation, and all the rest—just another attempt by the elites and the Democrats to stop Trump and his voters from getting a fair shake in an election.”
Ruling
Colorado’s highest court overturned a ruling from a district court judge who found that President Trump could not be barred from the ballot because it was unclear that the provision was intended to cover the presidency.“We do not reach these conclusions lightly,” wrote the court’s majority. “We are mindful of the magnitude and weight of the questions now before us. We are likewise mindful of our solemn duty to apply the law, without fear or favor, and without being swayed by public reaction to the decisions that the law mandates we reach.”
His attorneys said had promised to appeal any disqualification immediately to the nation’s highest court, which has the final say about constitutional matters.
Trump legal spokeswoman Alina Habba said in a statement Tuesday night: “This ruling, issued by the Colorado Supreme Court, attacks the very heart of this nation’s democracy. It will not stand, and we trust that the Supreme Court will reverse this unconstitutional order.”
The left-leaning group that brought the Colorado case, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, hailed the ruling.
“Our Constitution clearly states that those who violate their oath by attacking our democracy are barred from serving in government,” its president, Noah Bookbinder, said in a statement after the ruling.
President Trump’s attorneys also had urged the Colorado high court to reverse a lower court ruling claiming that he incited the Jan. 6 Capitol breach. His lawyers argued the then-president had simply been using his free speech rights and hadn’t called for violence. Trump attorney Scott Gessler also argued the attack was more of a “riot” than an insurrection.
Colorado Supreme Court Justices Richard Gabriel, Melissa Hart, Monica Márquez, and Justice William Hood ruled for the petitioners. They were all appointed by Democratic governors.
Chief Justice Brian Boatright dissented, arguing the constitutional questions were too complex to be solved in a state hearing. Justices Maria Berkenkotter and Carlos Samour also dissented.
“Our government cannot deprive someone of the right to hold public office without due process of law,” Judge Samour wrote in his dissent. “Even if we are convinced that a candidate committed horrible acts in the past—dare I say, engaged in insurrection—there must be procedural due process before we can declare that individual disqualified from holding public office.”
