A federal judge in Virginia on Friday dismissed a lawsuit aimed at removing former President Donald Trump from the state’s 2024 primary election, citing the insurrection clause of the 14th Amendment to the Constitution.
The complaint, filed by activists Roy Perry-Bey and Carlos Howard, alleged that Trump “engaged in an insurrection or rebellion” against the United States and should therefore be disqualified from seeking the office he once held.
Judge Leonie Brinkema of the Eastern District of Virginia, appointed by former President Bill Clinton, ruled that the plaintiffs lacked standing to sue and remove Trump, 77, from the state’s primary ballot.
“At least five additional federal courts have concluded that citizens attempting to disqualify individuals, including former President Trump, from participating in elections or holding public office based on the January 6, 2021 attack on the United States Capitol lacked standing.” active,” Brinkema wrote in his 13-page ruling.
“Plaintiffs have failed to demonstrate at all how their alleged injuries can be attributed to the defendants’ conduct,” the judge added.
A federal judge in Virginia dismissed a lawsuit against Donald Trump that sought to remove the former president from the state’s 2024 ballot. AP Judge Leonie Brinkema determined that the plaintiffs lacked standing to sue and remove Trump from the state’s primary ballot for his role in the “January 6, 2021 attack on the United States Capitol.” AP
Brinkema also noted that appeal to rulings in Colorado and Maine that kept Trump off the ballot is misplaced.
“Plaintiffs’ attempt to achieve a result similar to Colorado’s cannot occur in this Court because of the nature of their direct federal constitutional claims and because of the restrictions imposed by Article III that limit the jurisdiction of federal courts,” wrote.
Earlier this month, the Colorado Supreme Court ruled that Trump was ineligible to appear on the state’s primary ballot under Section Three of the Fourteenth Amendment.
On Thursday, Maine Democratic Secretary of State Shenna Bellows also disqualified Trump from the 2024 state vote, citing Section Three of the Fourteenth Amendment.
Trump is expected to appeal both rulings.
The rarely used insurrection clause was included in the post-Civil War 14th Amendment as a means to prevent former Confederate officials from becoming elected officials and assuming control of state and federal governments.
The Trump campaign celebrated Friday’s ruling.
“President Trump remains undefeated in 14th Amendment ballot challenges in federal courts with today’s ruling in the Eastern District of Virginia,” Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung said in a statement.
“So far, federal courts in West Virginia, New Hampshire, Florida, Arizona and Rhode Island, as well as state courts in Michigan and Minnesota, have dismissed these bad faith and politically motivated attempts to steal the 2024 election by disqualifying the President Trump to the polls,” he added.
Earlier this month, the Colorado Supreme Court ruled that Trump was ineligible to appear on the state’s primary ballot under Section Three of the Fourteenth Amendment. REUTERS
Cheung accused Democrats of launching a “multi-front legal warfare campaign to disenfranchise tens of millions of American voters and interfere in elections” over the former president’s lead in several primary and general election polls. of the Republican Party.
“President Trump will ultimately prevail in these unconstitutional attempts to steal the election and make America great again,” his statement concluded.
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Source: vtt.edu.vn