Attorney General Ken Paxton
AUSTIN – Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton joined 26 other attorneys general in an amicus brief to the Supreme Court of the United States (“SCOTUS”) arguing against a legally unfounded decision by the Colorado Supreme Court to remove presidential candidate Donald Trump from the ballot in the upcoming presidential primary election in that state. Following the brief’s submission to the court, SCOTUS agreed to review the case.
The amicus outlines how the Colorado Supreme Court erred in a ruling that Colorado citizens may not cast their votes for President Trump. Relying on an unduly broad interpretation of a post-Civil War constitutional amendment, Colorado’s supreme court justices undermined the democratic process by speciously declaring President Trump an “insurrectionist.” Further, by ignoring the clear limitations on governmental entities’ enforcement powers of the 14th Amendment, the Colorado court sought to usurp responsibility and authority that the Constitution assigns to Congress. SCOTUS has previously warned judges away from intervening in “the most intensely partisan aspects of American political life.”
The brief further argues that the Colorado Supreme Court decision threatens to create untenable chaos in the 2024 presidential election if not corrected by SCOTUS. As the brief explains, “[t]he Colorado Supreme Court has cast itself into a ‘political thicket,’ … and it is now up to this Court to pull it out. ‘Confidence in the integrity of our electoral processes is essential to the functioning of our participatory democracy.’ Purcell v. Gonzalez, 549 U.S. 1, 4 (2006) (per curiam). If the Colorado decision stands, that critical confidence will be harmed. Many Americans will become convinced that a few partisan actors have contrived to take a political decision out of ordinary voters’ hands.”
To read the filing, click here.
