Professor Nancy Marcus Speaks on Colorado Supreme Court Decision on Trump Candidacy

In the wake of the Colorado Supreme Court’s ruling that former President Trump is ineligible to run for office again, there has been much discussion about the reasoning for the decision and its larger ramifications for this year’s presidential election. 

On December 23, 2023, California Western’s Professor Nancy Marcus appeared as an expert panelist on ABC News 10 to address these questions. She explained that Section 3 of the Fourteen Amendment disqualifies any previously elected official from running for office again if they have "engaged in insurrection or rebellion" against the United States. Professor Marcus commented that President Trump’s words and actions leading up to and on January 6, 2021 qualified as insurrection. She said he “rallied the forces to ‘Stop the Steal’… twelve times saying ‘Come to D.C. on January 6th. It will be wild.’”

Regarding the broader consequences of the ruling, Professor Marcus said, “It doesn’t have any binding force; other courts aren’t necessarily going to be bound by it. But they can certainly use it as guidance in coming to the same kind of conclusion.” Maine’s Secretary of State has since barred President Trump from the state’s primary ballot citing the same rationale. 

President Trump has already appealed the decision to the United States Supreme Court. Professor Marcus noted that his attorneys will argue “that the Colorado Supreme Court is not correctly interpreting the 14th amendment of the Constitution.” 

The Colorado Supreme Court have stayed their ruling, pending the results of the appeal. The U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments and make their ruling later this term.  

You can watch ABC News' full segment here.