Top Maine Election Official to Appeal Ruling on Trump Ballot Decision

Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows introduced Friday that she shall be interesting a decrease courtroom ruling that positioned on maintain her determination to maintain former President Donald Trump off the state’s GOP major poll.

In late December, Bellows, who’s her state’s prime election official, dominated that the 14th Modification’s “rebel clause” bars Trump from searching for re-election, citing his central position in fomenting the January 6, 2021 assault on the U.S. Capitol. The Supreme Court docket lately agreed to evaluation an analogous ruling in Colorado, and is slated to listen to oral arguments on the query on February 8.

“Like many People, I welcome a ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court docket within the Colorado case that gives steerage as to the necessary Fourteenth Modification questions on this case,” Bellows stated in a press release. “This enchantment ensures that Maine’s highest courtroom has the chance to weigh in now, earlier than ballots are counted, selling belief in our free, protected and safe elections.”

Bellows’ announcement comes after a state Superior Court docket decide on Wednesday dominated that Bellows’ determination could be placed on maintain till the Supreme Court docket guidelines on the problem, arguing that “most of the points offered on this case are more likely to be resolved, narrowed, or rendered moot by the Supreme Court docket’s determination.” With out ruling on the deserves of Bellows’ determination, Superior Court docket Justice Michaela Murphy dominated that the Secretary of State must difficulty a brand new ruling after the nation’s highest courtroom comes down on the problem.

In her assertion, Bellows argued that “Maine legislation offers the chance to hunt evaluation from the Maine Supreme Judicial Court docket.” However in a ruling launched late Friday, Valerie Stanfill, the courtroom’s chief justice, wrote that the Superior Court docket’s order was “typically not appealable,” and gave Bellows a deadline of Tuesday to elucidate why the courtroom shouldn’t dismiss her enchantment.

Maine is only one of at the least 35 states legally difficult Trump’s eligibility on major ballots; lawsuits are nonetheless ongoing in lots of states. The previous president’s authorized group launched its opening transient within the Supreme Court docket case on Thursday, arguing that the authorized challenges “promise to unleash chaos and bedlam if different state courts and state officers observe Colorado’s lead and exclude the seemingly Republican presidential nominee from their ballots.” Trump referred to as on the courtroom to “put a swift and decisive finish” to the challenges.

With Maine and Colorado GOP voters set to go to the polls on March 5, when 15 states will maintain “Tremendous Tuesday” nominating contests, the timeline on these instances is tight. It’s unclear whether or not the Supreme Court docket will even have the ability to rule on the problem by that major date. Nicholas Jacobs, an assistant professor of presidency at Maine’s Colby School, advised The New York Occasions Friday that “the one factor we might be positive of is that, come Tremendous Tuesday, Mainers are going to be much more confused about whether or not their vote counts.”