MAGA Plan to 'Write in Trump' in Colorado Has One Major Problem

Supporters of former president Donald Trump have taken to social media to say they will cast write-in votes for him after the Colorado Supreme Court removed him from the state's presidential primary ballot.

But their plan has a major flaw: the court's ruling also bars the Colorado secretary of state from counting any write-in votes for Trump.

Colorado's highest court, in a 4-3 decision, declared Trump ineligible for the White House under the U.S. Constitution's insurrection clause, marking the first time in history that that Section 3 of the 14th Amendment has been used to disqualify a presidential candidate. The court stayed its decision until January 4, or until the U.S. Supreme Court rules on the case. The deadline for the state to print its presidential primary ballots is January 5.

The ruling reversed an earlier court decision. District Judge Sarah B. Wallace in November found that Trump incited an insurrection for his role in the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, but said he could not be barred from the ballot because it was not clear that the Civil War-era provision barring insurrectionists from public office applies to the presidency.

Trump's attorneys have promised to appeal any disqualification immediately to the U.S. Supreme Court.

"This ruling, issued by the Colorado Supreme Court, attacks the very heart of this nation's democracy," Trump attorney Alina Habba said in a statement. "It will not stand and we trust that the Supreme Court will reverse this unconstitutional order."

Following the ruling, supporters of Trump's Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement rushed to his defense on social media, with "write in Trump" at one point trending on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.

"Tell the people they can't vote for Trump and what are they going to do? They're gonna vote for Trump! Trump would win by write-in even if not on the ballot," one Trump supporter wrote on X.

Another wrote: "Colorado voters, we need you to step up and cast your vote as a write-in for Donald Trump."

One person added: "Hey Colorado write in Trump!"

However, the Colorado Supreme Court's ruling states that write-in votes for Trump will not be counted.

"We conclude that because President Trump is disqualified from holding the office of President Under Section Three, it would be a wrongful act under the Election Code for the Secretary to list President Trump as a candidate on the presidential primary ballot," wrote the court's majority.

"Therefore, the Secretary may not list President Trump's name on the 2024 presidential primary ballot, not may she count any write-in votes case for him."

Trump, the current frontrunner for the Republican nomination, lost Colorado by 13 percentage points in 2020. He doesn't need Colorado to win the 2024 presidential election, but there is a danger that more courts will follow and exclude him from the ballot in must-win states.

Dozens of lawsuits have been filed nationally to disqualify Trump under Section 3, which bars from office anyone who swore an oath to "support" the Constitution and then "engaged in insurrection or rebellion" against it. Courts in Minnesota and Michigan have rejected efforts to keep him off the Republican primary ballot, but have not ruled on his eligibility for the November 2024 general election.

The case in Colorado is the first where the plaintiffs succeeded.

Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, the left-leaning watchdog group that brought the lawsuit on behalf of a group of Republican and independent Colorado voters, hailed the ruling.

The ruling "is not only historic and justified, but is necessary to protect the future of democracy in our county," Noah Bookbinder, the group's president, said in a statement.

"Our Constitution clearly states that those who violate their oath by attacking our democracy are barred from serving in government."