Trump campaign, lawyers for objectors react to Cook County judge’s ruling to remove Trump from primary ballot

COOK COUNTY, Ill. (WCIA) – A Cook County judge ruled Wednesday former President Donald Trump should be removed from Illinois’ primary ballot.

She put the implementation of her decision on hold until Friday to give Trump’s lawyers time to appeal and in case the U.S. Supreme Court reaches a different decision than the one she made on a similar case they heard earlier this month from Colorado.

Judge Tracie Porter based her decision on Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, the “Insurrectionist Disqualification Clause.”

She relied on the Colorado Supreme Court’s decision to remove Trump from their state’s ballot. That case is pending before the Supreme Court and could impact the judge’s ruling in Illinois.

Section 3 of the 14th Amendment bars anyone who has taken an oath to uphold the Constitution and who has engaged in insurrection from holding office again.

That argument was at the heart of the objection a group of Illinois voters originally filed with the Illinois State Board of Elections to remove Trump’s name from the ballot. They cited Trump’s involvement in the January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol.

The legal teams representing the objectors celebrated the decision. In a statement, Caryn Lederer, a lawyer representing the objectors, said “Judge Porter’s reasoned decision contributes to the growing consensus of courts recognizing and condemning Trump’s decisive role in the January 6th attack on the Capitol. The decision recognizes the importance of rule of law and upholding the mandate of the U.S. constitution.”

Porter’s ruling comes weeks after the Illinois State Board of Elections’ eight member board unanimously voted to keep Trump’s name on the ballot. They said they did not have the authority to rule on constitutional issues.

Trump’s campaign says they’re going to to fight the decision in court.

“This is an unconstitutional ruling that we will quickly appeal,” Steven Cheung, a Trump campaign spokesperson, said in a statement following the ruling.

Illinois Republican Party chairman Don Tracy condemned the decision. In a statement he said, “As we’ve stated repeatedly, the Illinois Republican Party believes the people, not activist courts or unelected bureaucrats, should choose who represents them in the White House. This decision to remove President Trump from the ballot without due process is an affront to democracy and limits the voting rights of Illinois citizens.”

Following Maine and Colorado, Porter’s decision makes Illinois the third state to rule to disqualify Trump from the ballot.

The Illinois primary is March 19.

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