Former President Trump could still appear on Colorado’s presidential primary ballot, even after the state’s top court in a landmark ruling found the 14th Amendment’s insurrection ban makes him ineligible.
Trump is expected to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, a move that would automatically pause his disqualification.
Meanwhile, Colorado is set to finalize its primary ballot in just days.
The next phase of the case will dictate Trump’s future on the general election ballot in November, regardless, and those impacts could stretch nationwide.
Here’s what happens next after the Colorado Supreme Court’s ruling:
Ruling on pause until at least Jan. 4
Anticipating that Trump would appeal to the nation’s highest court, the justices in Colorado designed their extraordinary decision so that Trump maintains a pathway to still appear on the primary ballot on March 5 as he continues appealing.
“We are also cognizant that we travel in uncharted territory, and that this case presents several issues of first impression,” the court’s majority opinion notes.
The Colorado decision is automatically paused until Jan. 4, effectively making it Trump’s deadline to bring the case to Washington.
“If review is sought in the Supreme Court before the stay expires, it shall remain in place, and the Secretary will continue to be required to include President Trump’s name on the 2024 presidential primary ballot until the receipt of any order or mandate from the Supreme Court,” the ruling read.
Trump to ask Supreme Court for pause
Within minutes of the ruling, Trump’s campaign made clear it would bring the case to the nation’s highest court.
Steven Cheung, Trump’s campaign spokesperson, blasted the Colorado Supreme Court decision as political, blaming the seven Democrat-appointed justices and President Biden.
“The Colorado Supreme Court issued a completely flawed decision tonight and we will swiftly file an appeal to the United States Supreme Court and a concurrent request for a stay of this deeply undemocratic decision,” Cheung said in a statement.
An appeal to the high court could take weeks, if not months, to resolve.
Under the court’s normal rules, after Trump files his petition, the other side would have 30 days to respond. Then, the clerk would schedule the petition to be considered at one of the justices’ closed-door conferences next year, where they will decide whether to take up the case.
It’s possible the court could act sooner, however. Given the gravity of the issues involved, either side could ask the justices to take the rare step of expediting consideration.
And a stay motion, as previewed by Cheung, would be filed on the U.S. Supreme Court’s emergency docket, forcing the justices to confront the case within days. By default, the request would go to Justice Neil Gorsuch, who handles emergency requests arising from Colorado. Gorsuch could act on the request alone or could refer it to the full court, as is often done for major cases.
“This ruling, issued by the Colorado Supreme Court, attacks the very heart of this nation’s democracy. It will not stand, and we trust that the Supreme Court will reverse this unconstitutional order,” Alina Habba, Trump’s legal spokesperson, said in a statement.
Ballot finalizes Jan. 5
Under Colorado law, the secretary of state must certify the names and party affiliations of candidates on state presidential primary ballots some 60 days before the election itself.
With the primary election set for March 5, that deadline is Jan. 5. Ballots are set to be sent to military and overseas voters beginning later in January.
It’s unlikely the Supreme Court will fully resolve Trump’s appeal of the Colorado Supreme Court’s ruling before Trump is placed on the state’s primary ballots.
Given the state court’s self-imposed stay, that means Trump’s name would still be printed on the Colorado presidential primary ballot.
But, if the justices in Washington do eventually take up the case, their decision stands to impact Trump’s standing in November not only in Colorado, but also in states nationwide.