The Minnesota Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that former President Donald Trump can appear on the state’s Republican primary ballot, rejecting a lawsuit that argued he should be barred for violating the 14th Amendment’s rebellion clause.
“No state statute prohibits a major political party from placing on the primary ballot a presidential nomination, or sending delegates to a national convention in support of, a candidate who is ineligible for office,” wrote Chief Justice Natalie E. Hudson in a four-page opinion.
The order, however, opens the door to a possible 14th Amendment challenge to Trump’s possible appearance on the state’s general election ballot, stating that petitioners will not be stopped from “bringing petitions raising their claims regarding the general election.”
The 14th Amendment’s “Disqualification Clause” prohibits any person “engaged in rebellion or sedition” against the Constitution from holding federal or state office.
The Trump campaign slammed the 14th Amendment challenge to Trump’s candidacy as an “unconstitutional attempt to interfere with the election.” Getty Images
The court signaled that a legal challenge to Trump’s possible appearance on the general election ballot would be considered.REUTERS
A rarely used clause was included in the post-Civil War 14th Amendment as a way to prevent former Confederate officers from becoming elected officials and taking over the state and federal governments.
The liberal nonprofit behind the Minnesota lawsuit, Free Speech for People, cited the 14th Amendment and Trump’s actions surrounding the Jan. 6, 2021, riots at the US Capitol as the basis for the 77-year-old White House’s disqualification.
The decision “is further confirmation of the Trump Campaign’s consistent argument that challenges to the 14th Amendment vote are nothing more than a strategic and unconstitutional attempt to interfere with the election,” Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung told CNN in a statement.
Similar 14th Amendment lawsuits against Trump have been filed in Colorado, New Hampshire and Michigan as well.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
