Statement by Free Speech for People on Colorado Supreme Court Ruling in Anderson v. Griswold

Today, the Colorado Supreme Court ruled in Anderson v. Griswold that Donald Trump is disqualified from appearing on the Colorado presidential primary and general election ballot. This is a landmark ruling that honors the mandate of Section Three of the Fourteenth Amendment and constitutionally excludes Trump from public office for having engaged in insurrection and rebellion against the Constitution of the United States. We congratulate Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) and its co-counsel team which led this case.

Today’s Colorado Supreme Court decision reverses a lower court ruling that Trump could not be disqualified from the ballot because Section Three of the Fourteenth Amendment does not apply to presidents. The Colorado Supreme Court rightly determined that Section Three was intended to disqualify any officer of the United States who took an oath to support the Constitution and then engaged in insurrection, including those who took an oath for the highest office in our country.

This is a victory for the principle that a president who loses his re-election bid must step down peacefully, not launch a bloody insurrection to intimidate Congress, disrupt the electoral count, and remain in power after his term ends. We are proud to have aided the Colorado Supreme Court’s decision as amicus curiae in this case.

Free Speech For People is a national nonpartisan nonprofit legal advocacy organization which in 2022 filed the first Section Three challenges in 150 years, and this year has filed Section Three challenges against Trump in Michigan, Minnesota, and Oregon with plans to file additional challenges in multiple other states.