Minnesota Sec. of State Simon says his office has no authority to determine Trump's eligibility
ST. PAUL, Minn. — Secretary of State Steve Simon on Thursday confirmed that the state of Minnesota has no authority to determine the eligibility of former President Donald Trump, should he be the Republican Party's presidential nominee in 2024.
This comes following attempts by voters in Colorado to keep Trump off the ballot in that state. Six Coloradans earlier filed a lawsuit against Secretary of State Jena Griswold to prevent her from putting Trump's name on Colorado's primary and general election ballots next year.
Their lawsuit stated, "Trump tried to overthrow the results of the 2020 election, leading to a violent insurrection at the United States Capitol to stop the lawful transfer of power to his successor. By instigating this unprecedented assault on the American constitutional order, Trump violated his oath."
On Thursday, Simon said, "My responsibility is to ensure the people of Minnesota have free, fair, secure, and accurate elections. Every eligible Minnesotan deserves the opportunity to cast their ballot for the candidate of their choosing."
Simon went on to say that his office has received "received hundreds of emails, calls, and letters" inquiring about the proliferating legal argument that the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution could rule Trump ineligible to run for office again.
This line of thinking was kicked off, in part, by an article written for the University of Pennsylvania Law Review by law professors William Baude and Michael Stokes Paulsen. The latter is the Distinguished University Chair and Professor of Law at the University of St. Thomas, and a member of the Federalist Society, a legal organization that has substantial sway among conservative legal thinkers.
"In our view, on the basis of the public record, former President Donald J. Trump is constitutionally disqualified from again being President (or holding any other covered office) because of his role in the attempted overthrow of the 2020 election and the events leading to the January 6 attack," the two wrote earlier this year. "The case for disqualification is strong."
Simon said that Minnesota law does allow for one or more people to challenge, in court, the eligibility of a candidate to appear on a ballot, but not his office.
"The Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State does not have legal authority to investigate a candidate's eligibility for office. In the case of presidential candidates, the major political parties will submit names of candidates to our office for the Presidential Nomination Primary by January 2, 2024. Those submissions will appear on the ballot for the March 5, 2024 contest unless a court says otherwise. A similar process and presumption will apply to the November 5, 2024 election," he wrote.
Among Republicans, Trump is still dominating the primary field, despite strongly financially-backed attempts by Republican rivals. As of yet, the challengers appear to be doing little to diminish Trump's stature, fueling concerns among his GOP critics.
Meanwhile, President Joe Biden remains more than likely to secure the nomination on the Democratic side. The 80-year-old incumbent is facing only token opposition, making a 2024 rematch between the two main 2020 candidates appear to be all but inevitable.
