The Michigan Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected an appeal that sought to prevent former President Donald Trump from being on the state’s 2024 primary election ballot, after a former state judge ruled that Trump could stay on the ballot. This ruling came after the Colorado Supreme Court decided last week to bar Trump from the ballot in that state, a decision that is likely to be settled in the Supreme Court.
Key Facts
A Michigan state judge ruled last month that the former president and frontrunner for the Republican nomination in 2024 could remain on the ballot, asserting that Trump complied with state law in entering the presidential race and leaving it to Congress to decide whether he is qualified to hold office.
The state appeals court also sided with Trump this month, rejecting an appeal from a monitoring rights group, “People’s Free Speech,” stating that “the only alleged basis for removing Trump from the presidential ballot would not be a sufficient basis for removing his name from that ballot.”
What to Watch For
The Colorado ruling preventing Trump from being on the ballot will not take effect until January 4, giving his legal team more than a week to appeal the decision to the Supreme Court, a widely expected appeal. The primary election date in Colorado is set for March 5.
Critical Quote
Trump praised the Michigan Supreme Court in a post on the “Truth Social” platform on Wednesday morning for rightly and forcefully rejecting the Democrats’ desperate attempt to remove him from the ballot. Trump also emphasized his criticism of Colorado’s decision, stating, “Colorado is the only state that fell victim to the conspiracy,” considering the Colorado ruling to be “mocked and ridiculed across the world.”
Despite the legal challenges Trump faces, including four indictments since launching his re-election campaign late last year, he remains the clear frontrunner for the Republican Party in the 2024 race. As of Tuesday, Trump leads the pack of major challengers with 61.2% support among potential Republican voters, outpacing Florida Governor Ron DeSantis by 11.7% and former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley by 11%, according to the weighted average of polling data from “FiveThirtyEight.”
Further Reading
Excluding Trump from the Colorado ballot under the Fourteenth Amendment (Forbes)
Trump’s Fourteenth Amendment: Here’s where the legal challenges stand against the former president’s candidacy after Colorado excluded him (Forbes)
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