Former US president Donald Trump on Tuesday filed an appeal against a ruling that would keep him off the presidential primary ballot in Maine.
Calling Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows a “biased decision maker”, Trump’s attorneys asked the Maine Superior Court to toss out the ruling. They alleged that the top election official, a Democrat, “acted in an arbitrary and capricious manner.”
Two strikes against Trump
Last week, Maine became the second US state to bar Trump from appearing on the presidential primary ballot over his role in the January 6, 2021, assault on the US Capitol by his supporters.
Bellows in her decision said that the January 6 Capitol attack “occurred at the behest of, and with the knowledge and support of, the outgoing president.”
“The US Constitution does not tolerate an assault on the foundations of our government and (the Maine law) requires me to act in response,” she added, as quoted by AFP.
“Given the compressed timeframe, the novel constitutional questions involved, the importance of this case, and impending ballot preparation deadlines, I will suspend the effect of my decision until the Superior Court rules on any appeal, or the time to appeal …has expired,” wrote Bellows in her decision.
Before Maine, the Colorado Supreme Court ruled that Trump, the frontrunner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, is ineligible to appear on the presidential primary ballot. The western state had invoked the 14th Amendment’s “insurrection clause” which the state’s supreme court said was violated by Trump.
Section Three of the 14th Amendment to the US Constitution bars anyone from holding public office if they engaged in “insurrection or rebellion” after once pledging to support and defend the Constitution.
Similar 14th Amendment challenges questioning Trump’s eligibility have also been filed in other US states. Recently, California, Minnesota, and Michigan ruled that Trump should stay on the ballot in the states.
The Republican Party has already filed an appeal against the Colorado Supreme Court ruling in the US Supreme Court. Trump himself also plans to file an appeal with the nation’s highest court. The Maine ruling is also expected to eventually make its way to the top court.
Americans favour Trump, finds poll
Even as Trump faces multiple bans over the Capitol riot, a Washington Post-University of Maryland poll has found that Republicans in the US are more sympathetic to his supporters who stormed the government office.
The poll found that Republicans are now less likely to believe that Jan 6 rioters were “mostly violent.”
Furthermore, they are also less likely to believe Trump bears responsibility for the attack. They are also slightly less likely to view President Joe Biden’s election win as legitimate — more than one-third or 36 per cent of Americans, do not accept his victory as legitimate.
(With inputs from agencies)
