A Colorado judge dismissed a lawsuit on Friday seeking to bar former President Donald Trump from participating in the 2024 Republican presidential primary. The lawsuit, rooted in the events leading up to the 2021 Capitol riot, aimed to invoke Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, which disqualifies individuals who engage in insurrection from holding office.
District Judge Sarah Wallace issued the ruling, directing the Colorado Secretary of State to include Trump on the state’s primary ballot next year. The lawsuit, filed by a group of Colorado voters in September, argued that Trump’s actions in relation to the Capitol riot rendered him ineligible for future office.
Despite the plaintiffs contending that Section 3 of the 14th Amendment should apply to Trump, Judge Wallace disagreed, asserting that the insurrection ban does not explicitly encompass presidents. She stated, “After considering the arguments on both sides, the Court is persuaded that ‘officers of the United States’ did not include the President of the United States.”
However, she did acknowledge that Trump had “engaged in an insurrection on January 6, 2021, through incitement,” asserting that the First Amendment does not shield his speech.
The ruling marks a setback for the broader effort to disqualify Trump from the Republican primary election, echoing similar unsuccessful attempts in New Hampshire, Minnesota, and Michigan. The left-leaning group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, which initiated the Colorado lawsuit, expressed its intent to file an appeal to the Colorado Supreme Court shortly after the ruling. The group welcomed Judge Wallace’s determination that Trump had engaged in insurrection, emphasizing their commitment to pursuing the case further.
This decision follows a week-long bench trial during which lawyers for the plaintiffs presented arguments that Trump had forfeited the right to run for president due to his alleged role in the Capitol riots. Witnesses, including two US Capitol Police officers injured during the riots, testified for the plaintiffs.
Trump’s legal team countered by disclaiming his responsibility for the attacks, emphasizing the unprecedented nature of the petition. Scott Gessler, Trump’s attorney, stated, “The petitioners are asking this court to do something that’s never been done in the history of the United States. The evidence doesn’t come close to allowing the court to do it.”
The 14th Amendment, ratified after the American Civil War, specifically Section 3, historically aimed at barring secessionists from reoccupying government posts after southern states rejoined the Union. The strategy to use this amendment gained traction in August, following accusations of election subversion against Trump in separate criminal cases.
The possibility of future challenges to Trump’s candidacy in Colorado or other states ahead of the Republican primary and the general election remains uncertain. Legal experts anticipate that the case, or a similar one, is likely to reach the US Supreme Court.
