- The Supreme Court ruled Monday that Donald Trump can continue to vote in Colorado after the state's highest court ruled in December that he could not
- Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold was disappointed by the ruling
- She had asked the Supreme Court to rule in favor of Colorado's voting ban
- Read more about the Supreme Court ruling in favor of Donald Trump
Colorado's secretary of state, who wanted the Supreme Court to remove Donald Trump from her state's ballot, admitted she was disheartened that the high court ruled unanimously in the former president's favor.
Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold said she was still hopeful that Congress could pursue insurrection charges against the former president.
She had previously asked the Supreme Court to keep Trump out of the election so that “votes are not wasted on candidates who are not eligible to vote.”
In an interview shortly after the Supreme Court voted 9-0 for former President Trump, she admitted she was defeated by the ruling.
“My bigger reaction is disappointment,” she said. “I believe states should be able to ban oath-breaking insurrectionists under our Constitution.”
Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold said she was disappointed by the Supreme Court's ruling on Monday
Former President Donald Trump held a news conference after the ruling in which he said the Supreme Court was right in its ruling, before adding that the case was politically motivated
The case hinged on whether Trump should be removed from the ballot for his participation in an “insurrection” on January 6, 2021.
The Colorado Supreme Court had ruled that he did so and that he should therefore be barred from holding elected office under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment.
But the Supreme Court disagreed.
“The responsibility for enforcing Section 3 against federal officials and candidates lies with Congress, not the states,” the justices wrote in their ruling.
“The Colorado Supreme Court’s ruling therefore cannot stand.” All nine members of the Court agree with this result.”
Despite the defeat, Griswold said she still has hope that Trump can be removed from the ballot.
“Ultimately, this decision leaves the door open for Congress to take action to pass authorizing legislation.”
Griswold said she still held out hope that Congress could decide that Trump participated in an insurrection, which would therefore disqualify him from running
She was referring to how the Supreme Court struck down Congress's decision on whether Trump participated in an insurrection.
Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., meanwhile, said in an interview Monday that he wants to “revive” legislation in the House to determine whether Trump committed insurrection, lending credence to Griswold's claim.
However, Congress has yet to decide whether Trump committed insurrection or not, and that is unlikely to happen under Republican Speaker of the House Mike Johnson.
“We know that Congress is a nearly dysfunctional body,” Griswold said.
“So ultimately it’s up to American voters to save our democracy in November.”
Monday's Supreme Court decision also ensured that Trump would appear on the ballot in Maine after the secretary of state previously ruled that the former president should not appear on the ballot on Jan. 6 because of his conduct.