California’s Lt. Gov. is calling on the state’s top elections official to explore ways to remove former President Donald Trump from the primary ballot.
California Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis has called on the secretary of state to explore every possible legal avenue to block former President Donald Trump from the state’s presidential primary ballot.
Ms. Kounalakis said in a Dec. 20 letter to California Secretary of State Shirley Weber that she should look to the Colorado Supreme Court’s decision from the previous day that blocks President Trump from the Colorado primary ballot and take similar action in the same spirit. remove
“I am prompted by the Colorado Supreme Court’s recent ruling that former President Donald Trump is ineligible to appear on the state’s ballot as a Presidential Candidate due to his role in inciting an insurrection in the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021,” Ms. Kounalakis wrote.
“I urge you to explore every legal option to remove former President Donald Trump from California’s 2024 presidential primary ballot,” she added.
The letter comes a day after the Colorado Supreme Court ruled that President Trump is ineligible to appear on the state’s primary ballot for his alleged role in the Jan. 6 incident. The 4–3 decision hinged on two key premises. One is that the U.S. President is a public “officer” in the understanding of the law and that President Trump supposedly engaged in an “insurrection.”
President Trump has called the Colorado court’s ruling a politically motivated decision and a “shame for our country.” His attorneys have said they will appeal the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court.
A spokesperson for the California Secretary of State’s office told The Epoch Times in an emailed statement that they’re reviewing the letter and “may respond at an appropriate time.”
Much like the Colorado Supreme Court’s decision was denounced by President Trump’s GOP rivals for the 2024 Republican nomination for president, Ms. Kounalakis’ call to bar the former president met with derision.
“Now California is trying to remove Trump from the ballot, citing Colorado. DeSantis, Haley, & Christie should join me in pledging to withdraw from the primary in any state that removes Trump from the ballot,” presidential hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy wrote in a post on X. “That’s the only way to stop blatant election interference in the GOP primary.”
By Tom Ozimek
