After the Colorado State Supreme Court ruled former President Donald Trump was disqualified from the presidency Tuesday, Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold said she'd rely on the decision of the highest court to rule on the matter when certifying ballots for the 2024 election in Colorado.
Trump's team is likely to appeal Tuesday's decision to the U.S. Supreme Court, which would need to rule on the matter before Colorado's ballot certification deadline of Jan. 5, 2024, for the March 5 primary election.
"The Colorado Supreme Court ruled Donald Trump is disqualified from the ballot in Colorado for engaging in insurrection," Griswold, a Democrat, said in a statement Tuesday evening. "This decision may be appealed. I will follow the court decision that is in place at the time of ballot certification."
RELATED: Colorado Supreme Court rules Trump is disqualified from presidency for Jan. 6 riot
Steven Cheung, a Trump campaign spokesman, issued a written statement Tuesday evening in response to the Colorado Supreme Court ruling:
"Unsurprisingly, the all-Democrat appointed Colorado Supreme Court has ruled against President Trump, supporting a Soros-funded, left-wing group's scheme to interfere in an election on behalf of Crooked Joe Biden by removing President Trump's name from the ballot and eliminating the rights of Colorado voters to vote for the candidate of their choice. Democrat Party leaders are in a state of paranoia over the growing, dominant lead President Trump has amassed in the polls. They have lost faith in the failed Biden presidency and are now doing everything they can to stop the American voters from throwing them out of office next November. The Colorado Supreme Court issued a completely flawed decision tonight and we will swiftly file an appeal to the United States Supreme Court and a concurrent request for a stay of this deeply undemocratic decision. We have full confidence that the U.S. Supreme Court will quickly rule in our favor and finally put an end to these unAmerican lawsuits."
While every member of Colorado's Supreme Court has been appointed by a Democratic governor, they still split 4-3 in their ruling.
Colorado Supreme Court Justices Richard Gabriel, Melissa Hart, William Hood III and Monica Márquez ruled in favor of the petitioners, while Chief Justice Brian Boatright dissented and Justices Maria Berkenkotter and Carlos Samour broke with the majority.
"Our government cannot deprive someone of the right to hold public office without due process of law," 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."
Boatright said the case presents "uniquely complex questions" that are outside the scope of the Colorado Supreme Court.
Legal experts say that despite the unprecedented nature of Tuesday's ruling, it has no bearing on similar lawsuits filed in about 25 other states. Some suggest that it might help bolster the arguments of those trying to keep Trump off the ballot in those states.
"We conclude that because President Trump is disqualified from holding the office of President under Section Three, it would be a wrongful act under the Election Code for the Secretary to list President Trump as a candidate on the presidential primary ballot," the Colorado Supreme Court's majority wrote Tuesday. "Therefore, the Secretary may not list President Trump's name on the 2024 presidential primary ballot, nor may she count any write-in votes cast for him."
The case in Colorado was brought by six voters who argued that Trump's speech and conduct leading up to and during the Jan. 6, 2021 riot at the U.S. Capitol should bar him from running for President again.
The case hinges on Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, which says people who engage in an insurrection after taking an oath to support the Constitution can't hold certain offices. A Denver District Court judge ruled that she thought Trump did engage in insurrection, but that the office of the President shouldn't be impacted by Section 3 of the 14th Amendment.
"The court's decision today affirms what our clients alleged in this lawsuit: that Donald Trump is an insurrectionist who disqualified himself from office under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment based on his role in the January 6th attack on the Capitol, and that Secretary Griswold must keep him off of Colorado's primary ballot," said Noah Bookbinder, president of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, a progressive political ethics and watchdog group. "It is not only historic and justified, but is necessary to protect the future of democracy in our country."
"Our Constitution clearly states that those who violate their oath by attacking our democracy are barred from serving in government. It has been an honor to represent the petitioners, and we look forward to ensuring that this vitally important ruling stands," Bookbinder continued.
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