Former President Donald Trump will appear on the GOP primary ballot in Colorado, state officials announced on Thursday.
The stunning reversal nullifies a state Supreme Court ruling from two weeks ago wherein justices voted 4-3 to keep the former president off the ballot over false claims he is an insurrectionist.
The Colorado court’s decision was appealed by the state’s GOP to the U.S. Supreme Court.
In response to the appeal, Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold announced that Trump will be on the ballot by next week’s candidate filing deadline, barring unforeseen circumstances — that is, unless the U.S. Supreme Court were to somehow affirm the state court’s decision or decline to hear the case, Fox News reported.
Earlier in the day, Griswold urged the country’s highest court to take up the case quickly.
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“Donald Trump engaged in insurrection and was disqualified under the Constitution from the Colorado Ballot,” Griswold claimed in a news release on her X social media account.
She added, ”The Colorado Supreme Court got it right. This decision is now being appealed. I urge the U.S. Supreme Court to act quickly given the upcoming presidential primary election.”
Donald Trump engaged in insurrection and was disqualified under the Constitution from the Colorado Ballot. The Colorado Supreme Court got it right. This decision is now being appealed. I urge the U.S. Supreme Court to act quickly given the upcoming presidential primary election.
— Jena Griswold (@JenaGriswold) December 28, 2023
Griswold also shared a piece from The Denver Post editorial board that argued keeping Trump off the ballot is just.
From the @denverpost editorial board: “The case Anderson vs. Griswold is clear; Trump’s actions have disqualified him from holding the office of president.”https://t.co/KcF0Uxjxgy
— Jena Griswold (@JenaGriswold) December 28, 2023
As Fox News noted, a similar effort to keep Trump off the ballot in Michigan failed earlier this week.
The two separate outcomes essentially ensure the Supreme Court will have to make a final determination.
As The Associated Press noted when the court ruled to keep Trump off the primary ballot, justices used an obscure, Civil War-era clause.
“A majority of the court holds that Trump is disqualified from holding the office of president under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment,” the court wrote.
“We do not reach these conclusions lightly,” the majority decision continued.
Should the U.S. Supreme Court overrule the Colorado Supreme Court?
“We are mindful of the magnitude and weight of the questions now before us. We are likewise mindful of our solemn duty to apply the law, without fear or favor, and without being swayed by public reaction to the decisions that the law mandates we reach.”
Trump had not commented on the matter on his Truth Social account as of early Thursday evening.
