Trump Stays on Ballot in Illinois, State Board Rules – The New York Times
Trump Ballot Decisions
Advertisement
The state elections board said that it did not have the authority to decide whether Donald Trump had engaged in insurrection.
Reporting from Chicago
The Illinois State Board of Elections rejected a complaint on Tuesday that accused former President Donald J. Trump of insurrection by trying to remain in office after losing the 2020 election, and that sought to disqualify him from the state’s primary ballot.
The appointed eight-member board, which includes four Democrats and four Republicans, determined unanimously that Mr. Trump could appear on the March 19 ballot and that the board did not have the authority to decide whether he had engaged in insurrection. Lawyers for residents who challenged Mr. Trump’s eligibility said they planned to appeal in the courts.
Though the Illinois result was a victory for Mr. Trump, the process revealed potential vulnerabilities in his arguments as the U.S. Supreme Court considers a separate case out of Colorado about whether he is eligible for this year’s ballot.
See which states have challenges seeking to bar Donald J. Trump from the presidential primary ballot.
Two Republicans who heard the Illinois case — an elections board member who is a former prosecutor, and a former judge appointed by the board to hear arguments — said they believed Mr. Trump had engaged in insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021, when a riot by his supporters at the U.S. Capitol disrupted certification of the presidential election.
“There is no doubt in my mind that he manipulated, instigated, aided and abetted an insurrection on Jan. 6,” Catherine S. McCrory, the Republican board member, said before casting her vote on Tuesday in a downtown Chicago conference room.
We are having trouble retrieving the article content.
Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.
Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.
Thank you for your patience while we verify access.
Already a subscriber? Log in.
Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Advertisement