Former President Trump appeals Maine's exclusion from primary

Lawyers for former President Trump have called on the Maine Supreme Court to overturn the decision of Shenna Bellows, Maine's top election official and a Democrat, calling her a "biased decision maker" who "acted arbitrarily and erratically," according to AFP.

Previously, on December 28, 2023, Ms. Bellows decided to disqualify Mr. Trump from the primary election in this state because of the former president's role in the riot at the Capitol on January 6, 2021, similar to the ruling of the Colorado Supreme Court that same month.

Bellows said Trump pushed a false narrative of election fraud to incite his supporters and direct them to the Capitol to prevent the certification of the election results, according to Newsweek magazine. Bellows concluded that Trump knew about the possibility of violence but supported it and failed to take timely action to prevent it.

Former US President Donald Trump arrives for a hearing on civil fraud charges against the Trump Organization, at the New York State Supreme Court in New York City on December 7, 2023.

Lawfare compiled data showing that lawsuits to disqualify Trump from the 2024 election are pending in 14 other states, with several filed by little-known Republican candidate John Castro. The lawsuits argue that Trump is ineligible to run under the 14th Amendment to the US Constitution, which bars officials who have taken an oath to the Constitution from holding office in the future if they participated in an insurrection.

The Colorado Republican Party has filed a separate appeal to the US Supreme Court, saying the 14th Amendment does not apply to the presidency and that only the US Congress has the power to enforce it. Mr. Trump insists that he did not participate in the insurrection, and counterclaims that those suing him are interfering in the election, as he is the leading candidate for the Republican nomination next year.

Ratified after the American Civil War in the 19th century, the 14th Amendment states that officials who swear an oath to support the Constitution will be barred from holding office in the future if they engage in rebellion. It has been invoked only twice since 1919 and its wording is vague, making no mention of the presidency.

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