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AnnMarie Hilton, Maine Morning Star
Former President Donald Trump is appealing the decision from Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows to disqualify him from the Republican presidential primary ballot.
On Dec. 28, Bellows ruled that Trump is ineligible under the 14th Amendment, which prohibits anyone who took an oath to uphold the Constitution and then “engaged in insurrection or rebellion” from holding office. This applies to Trump’s actions on Jan. 6, 2021, when he incited people to attack the U.S. Capitol, plaintiffs in the cases argued.
Trump’s appeal was filed Tuesday in Maine Superior Court in Kennebec County. It claims Bellows, a Democrat, was a “biased decisionmaker” and had no legal authority to consider federal constitutional issues. It also alleges that Bellows made errors, and Trump will illegally be excluded from the ballot.
Trump’s presence on primary ballots has been challenged in multiple states, but so far, only Colorado and Maine have found him ineligible. However, the Colorado Republican Party has appealed the ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court.
In Maine, former Portland Mayor Ethan Strimling, a Democrat, and former Republican state Sens. Kimberley Rosen and Thomas Saviello challenged Trump’s election eligibility under the stipulations of the 14th Amendment. Mary Ann Royal of Winterport also contested Trump’s ballot eligibility on those grounds.
In a separate filing, Portland resident and lawyer Paul Gordon argued Trump could not seek the presidency under the term limits imposed by the 22nd Amendment because the former president has maintained that he won the 2020 election. Bellows rejected the challenge under the 22nd Amendment, writing: “There appears to be no dispute between any of the parties that President Biden prevailed over Mr. Trump. Therefore, given Mr. Trump has only won a single election for President, he is not barred from being elected to the same office again under the Twenty-Second Amendment.”
Maine Morning Star is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Maine Morning Star maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Lauren McCauley for questions: info@mainemorningstar.com. Follow Maine Morning Star on Facebook and Twitter.
