This week, the bipartisan Illinois State Board of Elections unanimously decided to keep Donald Trump on the primary ballot despite efforts to have him removed for his role in the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol. As a result of this decision, a group of five voters filed a lawsuit on Tuesday in Cook Court’s circuit court challenging Trump’s presidential ballot eligibility. The five voters alleged that the former president was ineligible to hold office because his actions surrounding the Capitol riots violated Section 3 of the 14th Amendment (known as the ‘insurrection clause,’) disqualifying him from appearing on the ballot. Let’s get into the details.
Background
Hours after Illinois’ elections board voted to keep former President Donald Trump on the primary ballot, a group of the state’s voters challenged the Board’s decision in court. The voters asked the state court to expedite its decision in light of the “significant public interest in the case and rapidly approaching electoral deadlines.”
On Tuesday, the Illinois State Board of Elections unanimously voted to keep Trump on the ballot, even though one of the Republican board members admitted that she believed the former president engaged in an insurrection, stating, “There’s no doubt in my mind that he manipulated, instigated, aided, and abetted an insurrection on January 6…however, having said that, it is not my place to rule on that today.”
The legal challenge put forward by the five voters and Free Speech for People, a national voting advocacy group, was expected after the Board ruled in favor of keeping Trump on the primary ballot and is one of dozens of similar cases that “have been filed in other states seeking to keep Trump from the presidency.”
In response to the Illinois Board of Elections voting to keep Trump’s name on the primary ballot, his attorney told reporters he was pleased with the Board’s decision “and prepared to respond to any court action.”
Illinois State Board of Elections Rejection of Complaint
The Illinois State Board of Elections comprises eight appointed board members, including four Republicans and four Democrats. On Tuesday, they rejected a complaint that accused Trump “of insurrection by trying to remain in office after losing the 2020 election, and that sought to disqualify him from the state’s primary ballot.” The Board voted that Trump could remain on the ballot, finding that “the board did not have the authority to decide whether he had engaged in insurrection.”
Multiple Board members, including Clark Erickson, a former Republican judge “appointed to hear arguments in the case,” concluded that “he believed Mr. Trump had engaged in insurrection…but he said he did not believe the Board had the authority to disqualify Mr. Trump on those grounds, and that the question should instead be left to the courts.”
Petition Details in Response to the Board’s Rejection
In the court petition for judicial review, the voters argued that “the elections board has the authority to determine Trump’s eligibility.” The petition argues for a prompt ruling from the Court to “allow sufficient time for further appellate review in advance of the looming ballot deadlines,” believing that the Illinois Supreme Court should ultimately resolve the case.
The voters petitioned the Court to allow Objectors and Respondents until today (February 2) to file briefs on the merits of the election board’s decision. They asked the Court to hold a hearing on February 5th for oral arguments. In concluding the petition, the voters requested the Court to “(1) establish the expedited briefing schedule proposed above; (2) order the State Board of Elections to transmit the record of proceedings to this Court promptly; (3) set an expedited date for hearing on the Petition for Judicial Review as proposed; and (4) grant any other relief the Court deems appropriate.”
Supreme Court’s Response Amidst Confusion Surrounding Primaries
The Illinois challenge “is one of dozens of similar cases filed in states seeking to keep Trump from the presidency under a provision of the 14th Amendment that bars some people who ‘engaged in insurrection’ from holding public office.” So far, only a case in Colorado has succeeded in Court. On February 8, 2024, the US Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in the Colorado case.
Outside Colorado, other state courts and election officials “have ducked the issue on similar grounds to Illinois, concluding they don’t have jurisdiction to rule on the obscure constitutional issue.” Legal confusion has left voters, election officials, and lawmakers grappling with how to proceed with primaries as the Supreme Court enters unchartered Constitutional territory as it attempts to clarify the issue. Until then, the Colorado Supreme Court stayed its ruling pending a decision from the highest Court. For more information on the Colorado case, check out this blog post.
While observers wait for the Supreme Court to decide whether Trump is eligible to remain on state primary ballots, “challenges to his eligibility remain unresolved in more than 15 states,” underlining the legal confusion surrounding this highly contested political issue. It will be interesting to see what the Supreme Court does, facing a decision that could have polarizing consequences, no matter the outcome.
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Sources:
https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/illinois-voters-boot-trump-ballot-file-legal-challenge-106836446
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/30/us/illinois-trump-ballot.html
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/01/26/trump-colorado-ballot-supreme-court/
https://thehill.com/regulation/court-battles/4440294-illinois-voters-sue-trump-ballot/
