Maine, in the northeast of the United States, this Thursday became the second state to expel former President Donald Trump (2017-2021), candidate in the 2024 elections, from that state’s Republican primaries. They allege he participated in an “insurrection” for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, storming of the Capitol.
On December 19, Colorado became the first state to ban Trump from participating in the election for the same reason. The ruling of the Supreme Court of that jurisdiction, which expelled him from the primaries, was a historic provision.
Now, Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows has invoked the Constitution’s 14th Amendment, which bars people who participated in an insurrection from holding elective office.
This amendment was passed in 1868, after the Civil War in the United States, to prevent people linked to the Southern rebels of the Confederacy from coming to power.
“I am aware that no Secretary of State has ever deprived a presidential candidate of access to the ballot box on the basis of Section Three of the Fourteenth Amendment,” Bellows wrote in the document shared by US media.
“However, I am also aware that no presidential candidate has ever participated in an insurrection before,” Bellows noted.
The Colorado Republican Party decided Wednesday to appeal to the US Supreme Court the decision to disqualify Trump from the state’s election.
On January 6, 2021, thousands of President Trump’s supporters stormed the US Capitol as lawmakers were certifying the election results that gave victory to the current president, Joe Biden.
Source: Clarin
Mary Ortiz is a seasoned journalist with a passion for world events. As a writer for News Rebeat, she brings a fresh perspective to the latest global happenings and provides in-depth coverage that offers a deeper understanding of the world around us.