Judge Dismisses Lawsuit To Keep Trump Off VA Ballot

VIRGINIA — A federal judge this week dismissed a lawsuit filed by two Virginia activists to keep former President Donald Trump off the state's presidential primary and general election ballots due to his efforts to overturn the 2020 election.

In the lawsuit, Roy Perry-Bey and Carlos Howard argued that Trump should be disqualified from appearing on the Virginia ballot under the U.S. Constitution's 14th Amendment, which bars anyone who has "engaged in insurrection and rebellion" from holding public office.

In a court filing obtained by Virginia Mercury, U.S. District Judge Leonie M. Brinkema ruled the pair did not show how Trump's presence on the ballot would cause harm.

Brinkema also chided the Perry-Bey and Howard, accusing them of "misling" the court and "continuously flouting procedural requirements" in their filings.

"Plaintiffs have totally failed to demonstrate how their alleged injuries are traceable to the conduct of defendants," the opinion states.

The judge's decision comes on the heels of Maine’s Democratic secretary of state removing Trump from the state’s presidential primary ballot under the 14th Amendment and a ruling by the Colorado Supreme Court that booted Trump from the ballot there.

On Wednesday, Trump asked the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn Colorado's ruling, setting up a high-stakes showdown over whether the constitutional provision will end his political career. The development came a day after Trump's legal team filed an appeal against Maine's ruling.

Both the Colorado Supreme Court and the Maine secretary of state’s rulings are on hold until the appeals play out.

In the opinion, Brinkman said the rulings in Maine and Colorado were based on individual state election laws — or Article III of the 14th Amendment — and were not decided in federal court.

"Federal courts across the country have consistently held that individual citizens do not have Article III standing to challenge whether another citizen is qualified to hold public office," the opinion stated.

The suit also named state election officials as defendants, prompting Attorney General Jason Miyares to request the court dismiss the case on technical grounds, the Mercury reported.

State attorneys said the legal challenge was based on a misunderstanding of how Virginia primaries work and that state election officials “do not actively police the eligibility of presidential candidates” in primaries run by the state but overseen by political parties, according to the Mercury.