A Chalmette resident has filed paperwork in a Baton Rouge court, challenging Donald Trump's placement on the ballot next year.
In her Petition, the Louisiana voter says that the Secretary of State must "apply the Constitutionally-required disqualification of a Constitutionally-disqualified candidate."
She's asking that his name be removed from the presidential preference primary, which happens in March; that's the primary that is only for people who are registered in a particular party. In other words, only registered Republicans vote on the Republicans who want to be President.
"Petitioner asserts that Trump is disqualified from the office which he seeks under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment to the United States Constitution which states “No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice-President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States, or under any State, who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any State legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any State, to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof," the petition states.
The petition alleges that "both Trump’s actions (engaging in insurrection) as well as his inaction (giving aid and comfort to insurrectionists) on January 6, 2021 disqualify him from holding any office of/under the United States," citing his January 2021 impeachment for "high crimes and misdemeanors" by the U.S. House, which accused him of "inciting violence against the Government of the United States”
The petition argues that no criminal conviction is required for this action, since the "disqualification is not putative and therefore does not require any criminal conviction. Its execution is automatic in the same way that not meeting the explicit qualifications is automatically disqualifying. Further, it supersedes any claim of First Amendment protection."
We have reached out to Trump's media office and will update this story with their response as soon as it is received.
