Tracking efforts to remove Trump from the 2024 ballot
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The Supreme Court on Thursday is poised to consider whether former President Trump can be disqualified from the ballot under the 14th Amendment.
Why it matters: The Supreme Court will weigh a largely untested provision at the crux of a bombshell decision in Colorado that disqualified Trump from the ballot over his role in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.
Driving the news: The Supreme Court agreed earlier this month to take up Trump's appeal in Colorado and consider whether he can appear on the state's primary ballot.
- The high court's ruling could determine whether the former president and GOP front-runner can be disqualified from the ballot across the country.
Zoom in: Challenges in more than 30 states have been filed citing Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, which holds that nobody should hold office if they "engaged in insurrection" or have "given aid or comfort" to insurrectionists.
- More than a dozen of the challenges are still awaiting a ruling or a decision on an appeal, according to the nonprofit publication Lawfare.
- Voters in two other states — Illinois and Massachusetts — filed 14th Amendment challenges to Trump's candidacy last month.
- The Massachusetts State Ballot Law Commission later dismissed the challenges to Trump's candidacy in the state.
Between the lines: Even if a challenge has been rejected in a state, it does not preclude other challenges from being brought in the same state in the future, Lawfare notes.
What they're saying: Trump's team has criticized the efforts to challenge his candidacy as election interference and has indicated he plans to appeal any rulings barring him from the ballot.
- "We have full confidence that the U.S. Supreme Court will quickly rule in our favor and finally put an end to these un-American lawsuits," Trump spokesperson Steven Cheung said after the Colorado ruling.
Go deeper: Congress erupts after court disqualifies Trump from Colorado ballot
Editor's note: This article has been updated with details of the Massachusetts State Ballot Law Commission's decision and with more context on the U.S. Supreme Court's action on the Colorado case.
