Colorado Judge Rules Donald Trump Can Be a Part of Primary Ballots But He’s Still in Insurrection

Donald Trump is perhaps at the eye of the storm due to his tumultuous ongoing legal battles, which he’s hoping to put to rest soon. At present, he’s amid the trial of his Civil Fraud Case and is gearing up for other cases, including his upcoming Classified Documents case, which is scheduled for next year. Concerning the January 6th incident, there have been some rather new and interesting developments that may or may not be in favor of the former President while he campaigns for the 2024 Presidential Elections. 

According to The Washington Post report, Denver District Judge Sarah B. Wallace made a ruling in court about the former President being allowed to be part of the Primary Ballots in Colorado. Although, politically it stands as a major win in Trump’s victory book, it also has a downside.

Just recently, the court was the first to find Trump a participant in the insurrection on January 6th, 2021. Judge Wallace wrote: “Donald Trump acted with the specific intent to disrupt the Electoral College certification of President Biden’s electoral victory through unlawful means; specifically, by using unlawful force and violence.”

Judge Wallace’s statement continued to conclude that "Trump incited an insurrection on January 6th, 2021, and therefore ‘engaged’ in insurrection.” Trump’s opponents have been presenting case after case from their respective cases in the hopes that the 14th Amendment would prevent the twice-impeached former President from participating in the ballots. Specifically, Section 3 of the Amendment is more accurate to the case as it reportedly bars former Confederates from office, including members who’ve sworn an oath to the Constitution.

The rule applies to any former member of the office who has condoned insurrection. Despite Judge Wallace’s ruling, she strongly claimed that Section doesn’t apply to Trump. Primarily, she credits this reason to the fact that it doesn’t specifically mention “President” and instead mentions “officer of the United States.” Furthermore, she wrote that she did not want to bar Trump or anyone for the matter “without a clear, unmistakable indication."

In light of this recent turn of events, an appeal sought out from Trump’s legal team is anticipated. If an appeal is made, the Colorado Supreme Court or the U.S. Supreme Court would be the platform to ultimately take things further. Neither Trump nor his representatives have commented on the matter to appeal and remain mum on it.

The ruling made by Judge Wallace comes just after another ruling by the Minnesota Supreme Court, which officially ruled that Trump shouldn’t be removed from the primary ballot in the state. This decision coincides with the ruling another judge in Michigan made in the same case.

Trump’s campaign spokesperson Steve Cheung may not have addressed appealing however, he did comment on Trump being allowed to participate in the aforementioned ballots. He deemed the action “another nail in the coffin of the un-American ballot challenges.”​