MI Supreme Court Rejects Appeal To Ban Trump From Ballot: Reports

DETROIT — The Michigan Supreme Court has rejected an appeal that intended to ban former President Donald Trump from appearing on the state's 2024 ballot, according to multiple reports.

A group of Michigan voters sought to remove Trump from the ballot based on his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol based on Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, which states that "No person shall ... hold any office, civil or military, under the United States ... who, having previously taken an oath ... as an officer of the United States ... to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof," NBC News reported.

The appeal rejection upholds the Michigan Court of Appeals ruling from earlier this month that rejected an earlier appeal filed by the watchdog group Free Speech For People on behalf of the voters, ruling that the secretary of state has "no discretion" as to whether or not a political party's primary candidate can be placed on the ballot, according to The Hill.

The ruling followed a Dec. 19 decision by a divided Colorado Supreme Court which found Trump ineligible to be president because of his role in the Capitol attack. That ruling was the first time in history that Section 3 of the 14th Amendment has been used to disqualify a presidential candidate.

The Michigan and Colorado cases are among dozens that are pointing to the so-called "insurrection clause" in hopes of keeping Trump’s name off state ballots.

Trump pressed two election officials in Michigan’s Wayne County not to certify 2020 vote totals, according to a recording of a post-election phone call disclosed in a Dec. 22 report by The Detroit News. The former president's 2024 campaign has neither confirmed nor denied the recording’s legitimacy.

Attorneys for Free Speech for People, a liberal nonprofit group also involved in efforts to keep Trump's name off the primary ballot in Minnesota, had asked Michigan's Supreme Court to render its decision by Christmas Day.

The group argued that time was "of the essence" due to "the pressing need to finalize and print the ballots for the presidential primary election."

Earlier this month, Michigan's high court refused to immediately hear an appeal, saying the case should remain before the appeals court.

Free Speech for People had sued to force Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson to bar Trump from Michigan’s ballot. But a Michigan Court of Claims judge rejected their arguments, saying in November that it was the proper role of Congress to decide the question.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.