Should Donald Trump even be allowed on the ballot in 2024?
Some of the country’s most prominent legal experts, and a small number of activists and politicians, argue he shouldn’t — and some have filed lawsuits trying to strike Trump’s name from ballots.
Yet most in the Democratic Party are keeping a wary distance from the effort. And other experts argue that such actions, intended to save American democracy, might in fact imperil it even further.
The argument for disqualifying Trump hinges on Section 3 of the 14th Amendment to the US Constitution, and its proponents argue that its plain language disqualifies Trump, who they say engaged in “insurrection or rebellion” against the Constitution, from holding office again.
Some go so far as to argue that secretaries of state should simply declare Trump ineligible and take him off their ballots — but so far, none have been willing to do so. Instead, then, the hunt is on to find a judge who will do it.
To be clear: It seems extremely unlikely that Trump actually will be disqualified, since the Supreme Court will get the final say over any challenge, and they’ll likely nix this whole endeavor.
Yet the very existence of the effort raises difficult questions about how a democracy should deal with the threat of a candidate like Trump, who retains a good deal of popular support, but who attempted to steal the 2020 election and talks constantly about having his political opponents imprisoned.
A Trump win in 2024 would be deeply dangerous for American democracy. Yet taking away voters’ option to choose him would pose its own perils. It would inevitably be seen as blatant election theft by much of the country — which would trigger responses, both from Republicans in office and Trump supporters on the ground, that could degrade democracy even more severely.
How the effort to use the 14th Amendment to disqualify Trump gained steam
The 14th Amendment was ratified in 1868, just after the Civil War, and was…
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