Illinois has opted to keep former President Donald Trump on the state’s presidential primary ballot. The Illinois State Board of Elections overwhelmingly voted to keep Trump on the ballot, dismissing claims of ineligibility based on the 14th Amendment’s insurrection clause.
Lack of authority
The bipartisan board, which consists of eight members, stated that it lacks the authority to deliberate on the issue.
The lawsuit accused Trump of attempting to change the 2020 election and encouraging the Capitol attack on January 6. Trump and his lawyers have refuted the accusation, claiming that he did not engage in insurrection.
“Trump did not engage in insurrection, as that term is used in the Constitution,” said Trump’s attorney Adam Merrill on Tuesday.
“It is a complicated legal term that has been rarely interpreted and it wasn’t even articulated correctly by the hearing officer in this case and, frankly, never should have reached it because of the lack of evidence, and because of the lack of jurisdiction,” he added.
Disappointment and celebration
Free Speech for the People, which represents voters, expressed dismay and vowed to file an appeal. They stated that the courts would demonstrate “why Illinois law authorizes that ruling, despite Trump’s subjective belief that the Constitution does not apply to him.”
Celebrating the decision, Trump said the board’s ruling was “protecting the Citizens of our Country from the Radical Left Lunatics who are trying to destroy it.”
The judgment comes just a week before the US Supreme Court is set to hear oral arguments on February 8 in a similar challenge to Trump in Colorado. The Colorado Supreme Court found that Trump was ineligible for the primary under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment.
Courts throughout the United States have handled dozens of similar challenges. To date, only the Colorado Supreme Court and Maine’s secretary of state have declared that Trump was unqualified to participate in their respective primary elections.