Supreme Court to Decide Whether Former President Donald Trump is Eligible to Run for President Again

The unprecedented constitutional issue of whether former President Donald Trump is eligible to run for president again has been taken up by two states, with Maine’s Secretary of State becoming the first top election official to unilaterally strike Trump from the ballot. The Colorado Supreme Court was the first court to apply to a presidential candidate a rarely used constitutional ban against those who “engaged in insurrection.”

Trump remains on the ballot in both states for next year’s GOP presidential primary, since both paused implementation of their decision to allow time for higher courts to intervene. The former president’s campaign plans to immediately appeal Thursday’s decision by Maine’s top election official, as they did the one last week from the Colorado Supreme Court.

The decisions have put the issue of Trump’s eligibility for the presidency in the hands of the U.S. Supreme Court, no matter how much the justices may prefer to avoid wading into this legal and political quagmire. The 14th Amendment was cited as the basis for the decisions, as both states deemed Trump disqualified from the presidency due to his role in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.

The U.S. Supreme Court will now have to decide whether Trump is eligible to run for president again, and the outcome of the case could have far-reaching implications for future presidential elections. The court’s decision could set a precedent for how future presidential candidates are judged and whether they are allowed to run for office.