Ohio won't bar Trump from presidential ballot
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Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose speaking at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington, D.C. Photo: Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images
Ohio is rejecting activists' efforts to block former President Donald Trump from being on next year's ballot over his alleged responsibility in the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021.
Why it matters: The decision helps Trump dodge an early campaign threat and allows him to remain eligible to compete for a state he won comfortably in the 2016 and 2020 general elections.
Driving the news: Groups urged elections officials in at least eight swing states to disqualify Trump based on Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, which bans anyone who's taken part in a rebellion against the government from holding a state or federal office, Axios' Erin Doherty reports.
- They've filed lawsuits in Colorado and Minnesota while sending letters elsewhere to states' chief elections officials.
Zoom in: Free Speech For People wrote to Secretary of State Frank LaRose (R) on Aug. 30 and argued he should declare Trump ineligible for the state ballot.
- "Ultimately, Ohio law leaves you no neutral position … Allowing a known insurrectionist to appear on the ballot is inconsistent with your prior commitments and your oath of office to support the U.S. Constitution."
The other side: LaRose's office says it has no right to take such action.
- "This is a fringe legal theory that's been widely rejected outside of the wishful thinking of some partisan activists," spokesperson Mary Cianciolo tells Axios in a statement.
- "Secretary LaRose has no legal authority to keep a candidate off the ballot who legally qualifies under Ohio law, and he has no expectation that a rational court will order him to do otherwise based on this ridiculous attempt at election interference."
What they're saying: LaRose is not alone. Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson (D) and others have been similarly reluctant to take action.
- "If we become political actors instead of election administrators, then we risk being a part of, even innocently a part of, the deterioration of democracy in our country," Benson told Axios.
Meanwhile, Trump has pleaded not guilty to felony charges that he tried to overturn the 2020 election and obstruct the certification of election results on Jan. 6.
- His campaign has said the lawsuits aimed at keeping him off 2024 ballots reflect an "absurd conspiracy theory."
What we're watching: Presidential candidates have until Dec. 20 to file paperwork to appear on the March 19, 2024 Ohio primary election ballot.
- Former Gov. John Kasich defeated Trump in the 2016 Republican presidential primary here.
- Trump is expected to face another Ohioan this time around, Upper Arlington's Vivek Ramaswamy.