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Here's What the Maine Superior Court Says About Kicking Trump Off the Ballot

Rebecca Downs
Rebecca Downs  |  January 17, 2024 4:45 PM

In the final days of 2023, Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows made the decision that former and potentially future President Donald Trump was ineligible for the state ballot. Bellows was elected not by voters, but by the Democratic-controlled state legislature. She also has been quite cozy with President Joe Biden. On Wednesday, Maine Superior Court Justice Michaela Murphy deferred that decision, with Bellows being told to wait until the U.S. Supreme Court rules on the matter. The Court announced earlier this month that it would be deciding the matter after the Colorado Supreme Court kicked Trump off of the ballot in a decision that also came last month. Oral arguments are set for February 8.

As reporting from The Hill mentioned:

Murphy’s ruling sends the Maine case back to the secretary of state, instructing Bellows to wait for the Supreme Court’s decision and then within 30 days issue a new ruling in light of the justices’ opinion.

“Put simply, the United States Supreme Court’s acceptance of the Colorado case changes everything about the order in which these issues should be decided, and by which court,” Murphy wrote in her 17-page ruling.

“And while it is impossible to know what the Supreme Court will decide, hopefully it will at least clarify what role, if any, state decision-makers, including secretaries of state and state judicial officers, play in adjudicating claims of disqualification brought under Section Three of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution,” her ruling continued.

Murphy also agreed to keep Trump’s name on Maine’s ballot in the meantime, at least until the Supreme Court issues its decision. Parties on both sides had consented to such a move, and a similar pause has been implemented in the Colorado case.

The move is hardly a surprising one, given that the highest court in the land is set to rule on the matter and could render a Maine decision moot. It's also noteworthy that Justice Murphy did not rule on the merits.

When the Supreme Court announced that it would be taking up the Colorado cause, Curt Levey, a constitutional law attorney and the president of the Committee for Justice, weighed in about how that could apply to other states. "While it’s possible the U.S. Supreme Court will rule so narrowly that the decision applies only to Colorado, it’s very unlikely because the Court surely doesn’t want to revisit this issue later this year," he noted, his statement addressing Maine. 

Levey weighed in once more following the Maine Superior Court's decision. "The ruling is a bit of a brushback to Bellows, noting she should be given the opportunity to reassess a rushed decision. But mostly the ruling is just a common sense decision to wait for the U.S. Supreme Court to weigh in," he told Townhall in a statement on Wednesday.

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Those like Bellows and the 4 justices on the Colorado Supreme Court who made the move to disqualify Trump made that decision based on Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, which many legal experts have regarded as an incorrect interpretation. This includes Alan Dershowitz, a Democrat and former law professor, who even called out a former student of his, Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) for being among those pushing such an interpretation. 

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) addressed the ballot question in previous podcast episodes of "The Verdict," where he predicted not only that the Court will rule to keep Trump on the ballot, but do so unanimously by avoiding expressing an opinion as to whether or not they believe Trump engaged in an insurrection on January 6, 2021. Cruz also pointed out that for all the charges against Trump, he has not been charged with insurrection. 

Cruz pointed out during an episode last week that if the Court were to uphold the decision out of Colorado, Trump would indeed be removed from the ballot, an other states would follow, potentially in all 50 states. 

Were the Court to go down that road, Cruz warned such a decision "would be so profoundly anti democratic" and "would rip this country apart." The senator offered assurances, though, that "the Court doesn't want to do that."

A decision from the Supreme Court is expected quickly, especially since Maine and Colorado are both part of the Super Tuesday states who hold their primary on March 5.