Illinois judge removes Trump from primary ballot
Illinois became the third state to remove former President Donald Trump from its primary ballot. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)
An Illinois judge ruled Wednesday that former President Donald Trump should be removed from the state’s primary ballot because of the 14th Amendment ban on insurrectionists holding office.
Illinois became the third state where Trump has been kicked off the primary ballot, following Colorado and Maine. Both of those states’ rulings are on hold pending an appeal of the Colorado decision to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Cook County Circuit Court Judge Tracie R. Porter immediately stayed her ruling until Friday, to give Trump time to appeal. The ruling also includes a stay if the U.S. Supreme Court rules on Anderson v. Griswold, the lawsuit at the heart of Colorado’s decision to remove the former president from its primary ballot.
Trump’s campaign blasted the ruling.
“This is an unconstitutional ruling that we will quickly appeal,” Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung said in a statement.
Porter said in her ruling that the Illinois election board’s January decision to keep Trump on the ballot was “clearly erroneous.”
In each of the cases, Trump’s critics have argued he is ineligible to appear on the ballot based on Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, which bars those who have “engaged in insurrection” from holding office. They have cited his conduct around the Jan. 6, 2021, assault on the U.S. Capitol in the wake of his reelection loss.
Trump has argued Section 3 does not apply to him, while his campaign has expressed confidence the Supreme Court will side with them.
During oral arguments this month, Supreme Court justices across the ideological spectrum seemed inclined to let Trump remain on the ballot in Colorado.
The Illinois primary is March 19, and early voting is underway in the state.
