Chalmette woman files suit to keep Trump off Louisiana ballot: report

(lailluminator.com) — Louisiana is the latest state where a court challenge will seek to keep former President Donald Trump’s name off the ballot in next year’s election.

A lawsuit filed Dec. 22 in East Baton Rouge Parish against outgoing Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin cites Trump’s role in the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the Capitol, our news partners at WVUE-TV Fox 8 reported on Wednesday of last week.

Plaintiff Ashley Reeb of Chalmette specifically wants Trump left off the March presidential party primary ballot. She confirmed to Fox 8 she filed the petition but declined further comment.

“Both Trump’s actions (engaging in insurrection) as well as his inaction (giving aid and comfort to insurrectionists) on Jan. 6, 2021, disqualify him from holding any office of/under the United States,” Reeb’s lawsuit states.

Similar lawsuits have been filed elsewhere, with plaintiffs claiming Trump willingly violated Section 3 of the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. Its provisions bar anyone from holding office who has “engaged in insurrections or rebellion.”

The Colorado Supreme Court ruled earlier this month in favor of voters who sued to stop Trump’s name from being on their ballots next year. Six Republican and unaffiliated voters filed the lawsuit with the support of the nonprofit Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, D.C.

The Trump campaign is appealing the Colorado ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court, which declined to rule on whether a former president is immune from federal prosecution for crimes committed while in office.

Trump scored a victory last week when the Michigan Supreme Court decided it would not hear a case challenging his candidacy there.

Comparable challenges have been dismissed in Rhode Island, Minnesota, Florida and New Hampshire before they could reach the trial stage.

A lawsuit to prevent Trump from running for president has also been filed in Oregon.

This article originally published in the January 1, 2024 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.