Beyond the indictments, there are other ways election officials and various left-wing special interest groups are trying to keep Donald Trump’s name off the ballot in 2024.
The most prominent effort happening right now concerns section 3 of the 14th Amendment which states as follows:
“No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice-President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States, or under any State, who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any State legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any State, to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability.”
The question is how this relates to Trump’s ballot access around the country and does it put him in jeopardy of being left off the list in competitive states ranging from Arizona to Michigan?
According to supporters of the plan, reported in the Washington Post, an effort is being made to remove Trump from the ballot based on labeling the incidents of Jan. 6, 2021, as an “insurrection” which is distinctly mentioned in the text above:
Some scholars and liberal groups are stepping up efforts to disqualify the former president based on a post-Civil War provision of the 14th Amendment.
They argue that under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, Trump is ineligible for the presidency because he took the oath of office and subsequently “engaged in insurrection or rebellion” or gave “aid or comfort to the enemies” during the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection.
Now, election officials around the country are considering how to navigate the issue, which could be decided on a state-by-state basis. The issue has already come to the fore in states including Arizona, Michigan and New Hampshire.
Some nonprofits — including Free Speech For People and Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) — are moving forward with a push to get states on board with their argument and are preparing lawsuits as the Republican presidential primaries near.
In other words, it’s a direct effort to meddle in the 2024 election and deny voters the right to cast a ballot for the candidate of their choosing.
There are several legal hurdles, however, that proponents of the plan would have to meet before Trump’s name could legally be removed:
Opponents of using the 14th Amendment against Trump argue that state election officials do not have the authority to bar candidates. They also contend that Trump did not engage in an “insurrection,” that Section 3 should not apply to a candidate before an election and that an act of Congress is needed to enforce Section 3.
Legal scholars have also raised questions about whether a former president who has never served in another office counts as an “officer” under the clause.
The issue almost would immediately wind up in the Supreme Court which means it could be a jump ball depending on how the text is interpreted. There’s also a question of whether a conviction against Trump, specifically in the DC case concerning January 6, could bolster the case for using the 14th Amendment.
By peddling plans such as this, Democrats are playing right into Trump’s hand when he claims that the establishment and DC swamp simply don’t want him in power again and they’ll go to any lengths to prevent it.
Furthermore, if Trump is so eminently beatable, as many Democrats claim, then they should be working hard to make sure he’s the nominee and his name’s on the ballot in all 50 states so voters can reject him in the voting booth.
The 14th Amendment storyline is yet another thread that will simmer over the next several months leading up to and likely beyond when primary voting begins in January. Undoubtedly, there will be some county official somewhere who decides to make a statement and announce they’re removing Trump’s name from the ballot for the reasons cited above.
When that happens, expect a courtroom battle where the justices will be forced to dust off their case law and look back to the late 1800s to decipher the original intent of section 3 in the 14th Amendment.
