FILE - Attorney Eric Olson, far right, argues before the Colorado Supreme Court on Wednesday, Dec. 6, 2023, in Denver. Colorado Supreme Court justices have sharply questioned whether they could exclude former President Donald Trump from the state's 2024 ballot. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, Pool)
DENVER (AP) – The Colorado Supreme Court on Tuesday declared former President Donald Trump ineligible for the White House under the U.S. Constitution’s insurrection clause and removed him from the state’s presidential primary ballot, setting up a likely showdown in the nation’s highest court to decide whether the front-runner for the GOP nomination can remain in the race.
The decision from a court whose justices were all appointed by Democratic governors marks the first time in history that Section 3 of the 14th Amendment has been used to disqualify a presidential candidate.
“A majority of the court holds that Trump is disqualified from holding the office of president under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment,” the court wrote in its 4-3 decision.
Colorado’s highest court overturned a ruling from a district court judge who found that Trump incited an insurrection for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, but said he could not be barred from the ballot because it was unclear that the provision was intended to cover the presidency.
The court stayed its decision until Jan. 4, or until the U.S. Supreme Court rules on the case.
Trump’s attorneys had promised to appeal any disqualification immediately to the U.S. Supreme Court, which has the final say about constitutional matters.
