Louisiana has joined a lengthy list of states where voters are seeking to disqualify Donald Trump from primary ballots after a woman filed a lawsuit claiming he was ineligible from office for inciting the January 6 riots.
Ashley Reeb, from Chalmette, filed the action on 22 December in East Baton Rouge Parish, asking a judge to block the Republican frontrunner from March’s primary for his efforts to prevent the peaceful transfer of power after his 2020 election loss.
“Both Trump’s actions (engaging in insurrection) as well as his inaction (giving aid and comfort to insurrectionists) on [6 January 2021], disqualify him from holding any office of/under the United States,” Ms Reeb stated in the suit.
Similar challenges have been filed in over a dozen states by individuals and left-wing activist groups alleging that Mr Trump’s actions leading up to the January 6 attack on the Capitol violated Section 3 of the 14th Amendment.
Ms Reeb filed the suit against Louisiana secretary of state Kyle Ardoin. Ms Reeb declined to comment when contacted by Fox 8.
Louisiana has become the latest state where attempts are being made to remove Donald Trump from the 2024 ballot— (AP)
In Colorado, the state’s highest court ruled this month that the former president should be disqualified from the presidency in a 4-3 vote. The state’s GOP has filed an appeal to the US Supreme Court.
The FBI said this week it was investigating a wave of vitriolic threats made to the state judges by Mr Trump’s supporters after the verdict was released.
On Wednesday, the Michigan Supreme Court rejected an attempt to remove Mr Trump under the same statute.
Courts in New York, California, Oregon and several other jurisdictions are also expected to rule on Mr Trump’s qualifications under the so-called “insurrection” clause in the next few months.
Legal experts in Louisiana say the latest case faces an uphill battle to remove Mr Trump under the 14th Amendment, which bars anyone who has sworn an oath to uphold the Constitution and “engaged in insurrection or rebellion” from holding public office.
“It might be a different situation if he had been criminally convicted in a court of law of insurrection,” Dillard University political analyst Robert Collins told Fox 8.
Others such as former federal judge J Michael Luttig have argued that there is “unassailable” evidence to remove the former president for inciting followers to storm the US Capitol in an attempt to reverse his loss to Joe Biden.
The Independent has contacted the Trump campaign for comment.
