Colorado Supreme Court: ‘Having incited rebellion, Trump can't run for presidency’

The Supreme Court of the U.S. state of Colorado ruled on Tuesday that former President Donald Trump is ineligible to run in the Republican presidential primary. The court has thus disqualified Trump from running for the presidency on charges of inciting rebellion in connection with the ‘January 6 Capitol Invasion’ in 2021.

The 14th Amendment, Section 3, restricts those who have participated in an insurrection from running for public office. However, Trump immediately announced his intention to appeal the ruling, and the conservative-leaning U.S. Supreme Court is likely to overturn the Colorado Supreme Court's ruling, so it is unlikely that Trump will be barred from running for president.

The Colorado Supreme Court ruled earlier in the day that it was "unlawful for the (Republican Party) of Colorado to include Mr. Trump as a candidate on the ballot for the Colorado primary election." A state district court had previously ruled that the 14th Amendment does not apply to the President, although it found Trump guilty of inciting rebellion. Still, the state Supreme Court overturned that decision, with the caveat that if Mr. Trump appeals to the Supreme Court, the ruling will be stayed until it is finalized.

Additional rulings on Trump's eligibility to run are expected to follow in key states, including Michigan and Arizona. This could add to the chaos in the U.S. presidential election process with 11 months to go.


weappon@donga.com