Activists Launch Plan to Keep Trump Off the Ballot in Key States by Using Sneaky Trick
In a backhanded compliment to Donald Trump, two left-leaning groups have launched a campaign to keep the former president off the ballot in at least five states in 2024.
Obviously, the effort makes no sense unless the groups fear Trump’s electability in those states — namely, California, Colorado, Georgia, Oregon and Nevada.
All five went for Biden in 2020, although Nevada was close, with only a 2.4 percent margin, and Georgia was famously closer, finally being called for Biden by a mere 0.3 points.
Keeping Trump’s name off the ballot in those two could have some impact there, but it’s hard to see how it would change results in California, Colorado or Oregon, which broke for Biden by 29.2, 13.5 and 16.1 points, respectively.
Even if Trump had won both Georgia and Nevada, he would still have come up 28 Electoral College votes short of the margin needed for victory, all else remaining equal.
Nevertheless, the two groups — Mi Familia Vota and Free Speech for People, began a week of rallies Sunday outside the offices of the secretaries of state in California, Colorado, Georgia and Oregon, according to The Hill.
The outlet offered no explanation as to why no events were planned in Nevada, but did note that the groups had previously written to Nevada Secretary of Sate Cisco Aguilar on the same topic.
The groups claim that the 14th Amendment grants each state’s secretary of state the authority to prohibit Trump from running for office because of his role in the Jan. 6 incursion at the Capitol.
Interesting, The Hill referred to that event as the “Capitol insurrection” — twice — while elsewhere noting that the Congressional Research Service has stated that it was not clear “whether the events of Jan. 6 rise to the level of ‘insurrection or rebellion again’ the United States.” (The Western Journal’s editorial policy is to refer to the events of that day as the “Capitol incursion.”)
Even if they did, it’s possible that Section 3 of the 14th Amendment would not bar Trump from holding the office again, as the section does not mention the presidency specifically, The Hill cited the CRS as having said previously.
Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, sometimes referred to as the Insurrectionist Disqualification Clause, reads:
“No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States, or under any state, who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any state legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any state, to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability.”
The groups are arguing that Section 3 does, in fact, apply to the presidency, and that Trump can be barred from that office even without a conviction for insurrection or rebellion.
In fact, the groups are calling their joint effort “Trump is Disqualified” and scheduled their week of rallies to coincide with the 155th anniversary of the ratification of the 14th Amendment in 1868.
Trump’s role in the Jan. 6 incursion remains under investigation, but that hasn’t stopped the groups from implementing their plan.
“Trump is responsible for the January 6th insurrection, plain and simple,” Alexandra Flores-Quilty, campaign director for Free Speech For People, told The Hill. “Failing to hold him responsible not only violates the Constitution, but it also sets a dangerous precedent for permitting violent attacks on our democracy. That’s not a risk we can afford to take.”
“We’re really focusing on Nevada and California and [Oregon, Colorado and Georgia] to make sure that they are taking a stand by disqualifying Trump in those spaces, which is something that the secretary of state can do,” Héctor Sánchez, executive director of Mi Familia Vota, told The Hill, without explaining exactly what difference he expected the campaign to make in 2024, even if it were successful.
“We had a number of meetings with secretaries of state and we have had this discussion,” he added. “So it’s a real possibility.”
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