After Colorado: US state of Maine excludes Trump from presidential primaries
Trump is not qualified for the office of president under the 14th Amendment to the US Constitution. The Amendment states that no person may hold public office if they have participated in a "riot or insurrection" against the Constitution after taking an oath to defend it.
She did not come to the conclusion lightly, Bellows explained. However, the events of January 6, 2021, had taken place "at the behest and with the knowledge and support" of the outgoing president. Bellows stated that the decision would be suspended in the event of a legal challenge.
A spokesperson for Trump's campaign team announced that they would take legal action against the decision. Trump's campaign team described Bellows' decision as "attempted theft of an election", among other things.
Trump received support from his fellow Republicans, including the governor of Florida, Ron DeSantis - one of Trump's rivals in the Republican presidential race. "This opens Pandora's box," he said.
On December 19, the Supreme Court in Colorado ruled in a sensational decision that Trump would not be allowed to take part in his party's presidential primaries in the state because of his role in the Capitol storming. This decision also referred to the constitutional amendment, but it is not final. The court in Colorado put its decision on hold until January 4 to allow time for an appeal.
Proceedings have also been initiated in other states to have Trump excluded from the primaries. This was rejected in Michigan and Minnesota, while the process is still ongoing in Oregon.
Trump is the overwhelming favorite in the race for the Republican presidential nomination and leads the polls by a large margin. The Republican primaries begin on January 15 in the state of Iowa, while the primaries in Maine and Colorado are scheduled for March 5. The winner of the primary will run against incumbent Joe Biden of the Democratic Party in the presidential election on November 5, 2024.
Biden had defeated Trump in the 2020 presidential election. Trump refused to acknowledge his defeat, however, and made widely refuted accusations of massive electoral fraud.
The right-wing populist's cross-fit against his election defeat culminated in an attack by radical Trump supporters on Congress, where Biden's election victory was to be finally confirmed on January 6, 2021. Shortly before the attack, Trump had called on his supporters to march to the Capitol and fight "come hell or high water".
The 77-year-old former president has now been charged twice for his attempts to overturn the outcome of the 2020 election and thus hold on to power. One of the criminal proceedings was initiated by the federal judiciary, the other by the judiciary of the state of Georgia. The trials are expected to begin next year, in the middle of the election campaign.
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- Following the exclusion in Colorado, the US state of Maine also decided to bar Donald Trump from participating in the presidential primaries.
- The Election campaign team of Donald Trump promised to launch a legal challenge against Maine's decision.
- Despite Trump's exclusion, he remains the favorite to win the Republican presidential primaries, with primaries scheduled in Florida, Maine, and Colorado.
- Ron DeSantis, the governor of Florida and a rival in the Republican presidential primaries, criticized Maine's decision, stating that it "opens Pandora's box."
- The Republican primaries in Maine and Colorado will take place on March 5, after the initial primaries in Iowa on January 15.
- Joe Biden, the incumbent president, will run against the winner of the Republican presidential primaries in the 2024 presidential election on November 5.
- Donald Trump's exclusion from the primaries in Maine and Colorado came after his role in the Capitol storming, which violated the 14th Amendment of the US Constitution.
- Despite Trump's legal challenges, the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives and the Justice Department have initiated criminal proceedings against him for his role in the Capitol storming.
Source: www.stern.de
