California’s Lieutenant Governor Eleni Kounalakis (D) is pushing the Secretary of State, Dr. Shirley N. Weber (D), to consider banning Donald Trump from the state’s 2024 presidential primary ballot.
Kounalakis sent a letter to Weber, urging her to “explore every legal option” to remove Trump from the ballot.
“I am prompted by the Colorado Supreme Court’s recent ruling that former President Donald Trump is ineligible to appear on the state’s ballot as a Presidential Candidate due to his role in incising an insurrection in the U.S. on January 6, 2021. This decision is about honoring the rule of law in our country and protecting the fundamental pillars of our democracy.
“Specifically, the Colorado Supreme Court held in Anderson v. Griswold (2023 CO 63) that Trump’s insurrection disqualifies him under section three of the Fourteenth Amendment to stand for presidential re-election. Because the candidate is ineligible, the court ruled, it would be a ‘wrongful act’ for the Colorado Secretary of State to list him as a candidate on that state’s presidential primary ballot. Furthermore, Colorado’s Supreme Court cites conservative Justice Neil Gorsuch to make their case, saying the following, ‘As then-Judge Gorsuch recognized in Hassan, it is “a state’s legitimate interest in protecting the integrity and practical functioning of the political process” that “permits it to exclude from the ballot candidates who are constitutionally prohibited from assuming office.”‘
“California must stand on the right side of history. California is obligated to determine if Trump is ineligible for the California ballot for the same reasons described in Anderson. The Colorado decision can be the basis for a similar decision here in our state. The constitution is clear: you must be 40 years old and not be an insurrectionist.”
The minimum age to run for U.S. President is 35.
Kounalakis added that this is a “dire matter” that “puts at state the sanctity of our constitution and our democracy.”
California Lt. Gov. @EleniForCA writes to Secretary of State Shirley Weber to “explore every legal option to remove former President Donald Trump from California’s 2024 presidential primary ballot.”
— Christopher Cadelago (@ccadelago) December 20, 2023
Letter here: pic.twitter.com/HoGZdjLmNy
