Former President Donald Trump, on Tuesday, contested the State of Maine's decision to prevent him from participating in the Republican Party's primary elections for the presidential race. Trump’s attorneys have requested the Maine judiciary to invalidate the decision issued by Maine’s Secretary of State, Shenna Bellows, stating that the Democratic official responsible for organizing elections in Maine has acted with bias and in an arbitrary and capricious manner.
Just a week after a similar decision was made by the Supreme Court of Colorado, Maine determined that the former president is not fit to hold the office of the presidency due to his role during the Capitol riot by a mob of his supporters in January 2021.
Bellows concluded that Trump is not qualified for the presidency because the 14th Amendment of the Constitution disqualifies anyone who has engaged in insurrection or rebellion from holding any public office.
Republicans rushed to defend Trump, including Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who is also vying for the party's nomination.
The landmark decisions from Maine and Colorado currently pertain to the Republican Party primaries scheduled to take place on March 5th in these states and will not come into effect until after all the challenges to them are exhausted.
Divisions also appear in other states, as courts in Minnesota and Michigan have recently ruled in favor of keeping Trump on the ballot in those states, and another ruling is expected soon in Oregon.
Lawsuits have been filed in several states to preclude the leading Republican presidential hopeful from securing the party's nomination for the elections to be held later this year.
Trump is also expected to appear in court in Washington this March on charges of conspiring to overturn election results and faces allegations of meddling in Georgia, where he sought to reverse the election outcome in this southern state after his defeat.
