Donald Trump has asked the US Supreme Court to overturn a decision to ban him from Colorado’s presidential primary ballot, setting the stage for the nation’s highest court to decide whether states can stop him from seeking higher office for his role in the January 6 2021 attack on the US Capitol.
The Colorado supreme court ruled last month to disqualify Trump from the state’s presidential primary ballot, saying he was not fit to be president under the 14th amendment to the US constitution, which prohibits individuals who have engaged in insurrection or rebellion from holding office. The court’s decision was put on hold until January 4 to allow time for an appeal.
In a petition filed to the US Supreme Court on Wednesday, Trump’s lawyers argued that the Colorado ruling “is not and cannot be correct”, noting that if it were allowed to stand, it would mark the first time in US history that the “judiciary had prevented voters from casting ballots for the leading major-party presidential candidate”.