The Michigan Supreme Court has rejected an attempt to remove former President Donald Trump from the 2024 ballot based on the U.S. Constitution’s “insurrectionist ban,” a court document showed on Wednesday.
The Michigan ruling contrasts with a decision by Colorado’s top court last week to disqualify Trump from serving as U.S. president and ban him from the primary ballot in Colorado because of his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol by his supporters.
How is the ruling different from Colorado?
The Michigan lawsuit never reached a trial and was dismissed early on in the process although the Colorado ruling was on trial. The judge said that the state law doesn’t give election officials any pass to police the eligibility of presidential primary candidates and the case raised a political question that shouldn’t be decided in the courts.
The Michigan Court of Appeals ruled, “At the moment, the only event about to occur is the presidential primary election. But as explained, whether Trump is disqualified is irrelevant to his placement on that particular ballot.”
The Michigan courts rejected the case on procedural grounds and never reached the question of whether January 6 was an insurrection or not.
