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Decision to bar Trump from Maine's primary ballot on hold

The Maine Superior Court stayed the decision because the U.S. Supreme Court will be taking up the issue in another case out of Colorado.
Posted at 2:48 PM, Jan 17, 2024

The Maine Superior Court has stayed a decision to ban former President Donald Trump from appearing on the state's primary ballot. 

In a ruling on Wednesday, the court said the secretary of state's ruling is on hold until the U.S. Supreme Court rules on a Colorado case on the same issue. 

Unlike in Colorado, where the state's Supreme Court ruled that Trump was ineligible to run for president because of the Constitution's insurrection clause, Maine's secretary of state made the decision. 

“I conclude … that the record establishes that Mr. Trump, over the course of several months and culminating on January 6, 2021, used a false narrative of election fraud to inflame his supporters and direct them to the Capitol to prevent certification of the 2020 election and the peaceful transfer of power," Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows said. 

Trump immediately appealed Bellows' ruling, which is how it ended up in the hands of the Maine Superior Court. 

On Jan. 5, the U.S. Supreme Court said it would hear the case out of Colorado. Arguments are scheduled to be held in February. Once the court rules, the Maine Superior Court said Bellows would have up to 30 days to issue a new ruling or withdraw her previous ruling. 

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