Judge Shuts Down Attempt to Kick Donald Trump Off Ballot

A Wyoming judge has rejected a motion calling for Donald Trump to be removed from the state's 2024 presidential ballot, on the basis that he is ineligible to serve a second White House term due to the Constitution's 14th Amendment.

The ruling was given on Thursday by Albany County District Court Judge Misha Westby who decided the case was "dismissed without prejudice."

Conservative lawyer Harmeet Dhillon shared two pages from the ruling on X, formerly Twitter, writing: "Not again! Yes again...Wyoming federal judge threw yet another 14th amendment challenge out on its ear today. Bye!"

Newsweek has not seen a full copy of the judgement but has reached out to the Albany County District Court by telephone and email requesting one.

Trump, who polling indicates is by some margin the frontrunner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, has already been removed from primary ballots in Colorado and Maine based on the 14th Amendment, though his team is appealing both decisions to the Supreme Court.

If one of the rulings is upheld by the Supreme Court, it would immediately upend the Republican presidential primary campaign, in a move without precedent in modern American history.

Section 3 of the 14th Amendment states that anyone who "engaged in insurrection or rebellion," having previously sworn an oath to "support the Constitution of the United States" is ineligible to hold "any office, civil or military" in the country. Trump's critics argue his alleged attempt to overturn the 2020 presidential election result, including his alleged role in the January 6 storming of Congress, constituted an insurrection, meaning he cannot serve as president again.

This argument has been rejected by Trump's 2024 presidential campaign. The campaign has said the allegation has no basis "except in the minds of those who are pushing it" and is "stretching the law beyond recognition."

The Wyoming case was filed against Trump and Senator Cynthia Lummis, a Republican from the state who refused to certify Joe Biden's election victory, on November 1, 2023, by Tim Newcomb, a retired attorney.

It sought to "preclude the names of Mr. Trump and Ms. Lummis from appearing on Wyoming ballots...and award reasonable attorney fees and costs incurred in prosecuting this action." Newsweek has reached out to representatives of Donald Trump for comment by email.

On December 19, the Colorado Supreme Court ruled Trump is not eligible to be on the state's primary ballot in a 4-3 decision, stating his actions around January 6, 2021 "constituted overt, voluntary, and direct participation in the insurrection." Just days later, the same decision was taken by Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows, a Democrat, who concluded Trump "used a false narrative of election fraud to inflame his supporters and direct them to the Capitol to prevent certification of the 2020 election and the peaceful transfer of power."

The moves triggered a furious response from Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung, who said: "Make no mistake, these partisan election interference efforts are a hostile assault on American democracy. Biden and the Democrats simply do not trust the American voter in a free and fair election and are now relying on the force of government institutions to protect their grip on power."

Trump's legal team has appealed both the Colorado and Maine cases to the Supreme Court, though they are yet to be selected. During an MSNBC appearance, Barbara McQuade, a former U.S. attorney and legal analyst for the network, questioned whether the conservative-dominated court would decide the case "on the merits" if it does choose to rule on it, suggesting it could instead seek an "off-ramp" allowing Trump to remain on the ballot.