The California governor said that such efforts may serve as a ‘distraction.’
California Gov. Gavin Newsom reacted to efforts to try and bar former President Donald Trump from the state’s ballot, coming after a top state official pushed for it.
Last week, the Colorado Supreme Court ruled that President Trump should be dismissed from the Colorado ballot for the 2024 election, saying that he violated the Constitution’s 14th Amendment’s Section 3. A majority of justices on the state court ruled that he engaged in an insurrection or rebellion against the United States under their reading of the provision.
The decision has triggered more efforts across the United States, including in California, to disqualify President Trump from appearing on ballots in 2024 under similar pretexts.
But in a statement issued on Dec. 22, Mr. Newsom told his fellow Democrats that he believes that “in California, we defeat candidates at the polls.” Referring to lawsuits against President Trump. “Everything else is a political distraction,” he added.
Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis, who is running for governor as a Democrat in 2026, issued a letter last week urging California Secretary of State Shirley Weber to look into “every legal option” to remove President Trump from the ballot in the state. Meanwhile, state Sen. Dave Min, also a Democrat, announced that he would introduce a measure to allow residents of the state to file lawsuits to block candidates who are deemed ineligible.
“Based on the Colorado Supreme Court’s ruling … I urge you to explore every legal option to remove former President Donald Trump from California’s 2024 presidential primary ballot,” the letter to Ms. Weber reads.
Ms. Kounalakis then argued that targeting President Trump for removal is about “protecting the fundamental pillars of our democracy,” repeating a common narrative that has been used against the 45th president and his supporters since the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol protest.
“I am guided by my commitment to follow the rule of law,” she added. “As such, it is incumbent upon my office to ensure that any action undertaken regarding any candidate’s inclusion or omission from our ballots be grounded firmly in the laws and processes in place in California and our Constitution.”
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