Colorado Trump Ban Puts Supreme Court in Hot Seat

The Colorado ruling disqualifying former President Donald Trump from the ballot puts a novel and highly sensitive set of constitutional questions before the Supreme Court, likely forcing the justices to intervene directly in a presidential election in a way not seen since Bush v. Gore in 2000.

Tuesday’s 4-3 decision by Colorado’s highest court found that Trump was disqualified from being president again because he engaged in insurrection by encouraging his supporters to storm the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in a bid to stop the certification of President Biden’s electoral victory. 

The ruling threw an unexpected jolt of uncertainty into the 2024 presidential contest and placed the Supreme Court in a position it likely would have preferred to avoid: having to resolve unprecedented legal issues that also ignite strong political passions among the nation’s electorate. Minutes after the Colorado court released its decision, Trump’s campaign pledged a swift appeal to the high court.