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Gone quiet · last update Mar 4, 2024 / Donald Trump

The fight to keep Trump off the 2024 ballot under the 14th Amendment

Overview · reviewed October 28, 2026

In 2023 and 2024, voters and officials in several states tried to keep Donald Trump off the presidential ballot under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, which bars people who engaged in insurrection after taking an oath to support the Constitution from holding office.[1][2] Colorado's Supreme Court and Maine's secretary of state ruled him ineligible over the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.[3][4] On March 4, 2024, the US Supreme Court unanimously reversed the Colorado ruling, holding that states cannot bar federal candidates under the provision.[5][6]

Read the timeline

Follow this story to see new developments when you return.

Colorado's Supreme Court and Maine's secretary of state ruled him ineligible over the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.[3][4] On March 4, 2024, the US Supreme Court unanimously reversed the Colorado ruling, holding that states cannot bar federal candidates under the provision.[5][6]

Coverage over time

Share of tracked outlets · monthly average of weekly shares (UTC)

Sep 2023: average weekly share 4% (left 1%, center 1%, right 1%), from 4 of 4 weeksOct 2023: average weekly share 4% (left 2%, center 2%, right 1%), from 5 of 5 weeksNov 2023: average weekly share 9% (left 3%, center 3%, right 2%), from 4 of 4 weeksDec 2023: average weekly share 29% (left 11%, center 11%, right 6%), from 4 of 4 weeksJan 2024: average weekly share 13% (left 4%, center 6%, right 4%), from 5 of 5 weeksFeb 2024: average weekly share 11% (left 4%, center 5%, right 3%), from 4 of 4 weeksMar 2024: average weekly share 11% (left 4%, center 4%, right 4%), from 4 of 4 weeksApr 2024: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 5 of 5 weeksMay 2024: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksJun 2024: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksJul 2024: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 5 of 5 weeksAug 2024: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksSep 2024: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 5 of 5 weeksOct 2024: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksNov 2024: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksDec 2024: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 5 of 5 weeksJan 2025: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksFeb 2025: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksMar 2025: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 5 of 5 weeksApr 2025: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksMay 2025: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksJun 2025: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 5 of 5 weeksJul 2025: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksAug 2025: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksSep 2025: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 5 of 5 weeksOct 2025: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksNov 2025: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksDec 2025: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 5 of 5 weeksJan 2026: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksFeb 2026: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksMar 2026: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 5 of 5 weeksApr 2026: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksMay 2026: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksJun 2026: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 5 of 5 weeksJul 2026: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksAug 2026: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 5 of 5 weeksSep 2026: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksOct 2026: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 4 of 4 weeksNov 2026: average weekly share 0% (left 0%, center 0%, right 0%), from 2 of 2 weeks, so far

LeftCenterRight

Each bar is the share of the outlets on our Left / Center / Right rating scale that we tracked publishing that week which carried reporting on this story, split by the outlets' ratings. Over more than two years each bar is a month: the average of that month's weekly shares, so the shape stays readable. The weekly table below keeps every week. We track more outlets now than in the archive, so a share keeps earlier and later weeks comparable. An outlet counts once a week however much it published, and outlets in one ownership or syndication group count as one on each side they appear on. A rating describes the outlet, not the report. A gap means no such reports were collected that week, not that nothing was reported anywhere. Weeks run Monday to Sunday in UTC, so a report published on a Sunday evening in US Eastern time counts in the next week. 10 more outlets off the scale (not rated, or outside the left-right graphs) also reported; they are not in this chart. See them.

Weekly counts, outlets and reports (17 weeks with coverage)
Outlets on the rating scale that carried this story each week, of the outlets tracked that week, newest first
Week of (UTC)LeftCenterRightOf trackedShareReceipts
Mar 4, 2024384236116 of 25446%
Feb 26, 2024810422 of 2569%
Feb 5, 202430372188 of 24236%
Jan 29, 202446515 of 2356%
Jan 15, 2024210214 of 2236%
Jan 1, 2024404838126 of 23254%
Dec 25, 2023454821114 of 20755%
Dec 18, 2023434634123 of 23652%
Dec 11, 20234015 of 2252%
Dec 4, 202345110 of 2175%
Nov 20, 202354312 of 2016%
Nov 13, 202320231053 of 21525%
Nov 6, 202342410 of 2374%
Oct 30, 20231718540 of 23317%
Oct 23, 20231304 of 2382%
Oct 2, 20230055 of 2432%
Sep 4, 202312131136 of 25314%

Latest coverage

The newest reporting in this story's record.

  1. Mar 3, 2024 · first reported · Headline from FOX 21 Colorado Springs

    Supreme Court rules to keep Trump on ballot

Background

In September 2023, a group of Colorado voters sued to keep Donald Trump off the state's Republican primary ballot, arguing that the Constitution's insurrection clause disqualified him.[1] At a trial that began in October, their lawyers argued that his role in the January 2021 assault on the Capitol barred him.[7][2] In November a Colorado judge found that Trump had "engaged in an insurrection" but rejected the effort to remove him.[8] In Michigan, a judge and the state's appeals and supreme courts kept him on the ballot.[9][10][11]

Read the full background (2 more paragraphs)

On December 19 the Colorado Supreme Court declared Trump ineligible and removed him from the primary ballot.[3] The state Republican Party threatened to withdraw from the primary,[12] Vivek Ramaswamy said he would withdraw from it,[13] and police investigated threats against the justices.[14][15] On December 28 Maine's Democratic secretary of state removed Trump from that state's ballot,[4] and some Republicans there threatened to her.[16] California, after its lieutenant governor urged action, kept Trump on its ballot.[17][18]

Trump asked the US Supreme Court to overturn the Colorado ruling,[19][20] and appealed Maine's decision as well.[21] The court agreed in January 2024 to decide the case,[22] heard arguments on February 8,[23] and on March 4 ruled unanimously that states lack the power to bar him from the ballot under the 14th Amendment, reversing Colorado.[24][5][6]

Supporting stories (24)
  1. A lawsuit seeks to bar Trump from the primary in Colorado, citing Constitution’s insurrection clause
  2. Lawyers argue whether the Constitution’s ‘insurrection’ clause blocks Trump from the 2024 ballot
  3. Trump barred from Colorado ballot – now what?
  4. Maine bars Trump from ballot as US Supreme Court weighs state authority to block former president
  5. Trump wins Colorado ballot disqualification case at US Supreme Court
  6. Supreme Court rules Trump will stay on ballot, overruling states
  7. Takeaways from Day 3 of the Trump disqualification trial in Colorado
  8. Colorado judge finds Trump engaged in insurrection, but rejects constitutional ballot challenge
  9. Michigan judge says Trump can stay on primary ballot, rejecting challenge under insurrection clause - The Daily Reporter
  10. Michigan court rejects challenges to Trump’s spot on 2024 primary ballot
  11. Michigan Supreme Court will keep Trump on 2024 ballot
  12. Colorado GOP say they will cancel primary if Donald Trump isn't on ballot
  13. Ramaswamy promises to pull out of Colorado primary in response to Trump getting banned from ballot
  14. Police investigating incidents involving Colorado justices after Trump removed from state's ballot
  15. FBI investigating after reports of violent threats to Colorado judges in Trump ballot case
  16. Maine secretary of state who opted to keep Trump off primary ballot is facing threat of impeachment
  17. California Lt. governor seeks to remove Trump from primary ballot
  18. California keeps Trump on the ballot
  19. Trump Asks Supreme Court To Overturn Colorado Ruling Kicking Him Off Ballot
  20. Supreme Court agrees to hear Colorado case over Trump's 2024 ballot eligibility
  21. Trump appeals Maine ruling barring him from ballot under the Constitution's insurrection clause​
  22. Supreme Court to decide whether Trump can be taken off 2024 presidential ballots
  23. Trump Colorado ballot case goes before seemingly skeptical US Supreme Court
  24. Supreme Court keeps Trump on Colorado ballot, rejecting 14th Amendment push

The full record

Each date is when an update was first reported.

All 37 recorded updates

March 2024

  1. Supreme Court rules Trump will stay on ballot, overruling statesHeadline from FOX 35 Orlando · 103 outlets
  2. Trump wins Colorado ballot disqualification case at US Supreme CourtHeadline from The Jamestown Sun · 14 outlets
  3. A Supreme Court decision could come Monday in a case about barring Trump from the 2024 ballotHeadline from KOB 4 · 20 outlets
  4. Supreme Court keeps Trump on Colorado ballot, rejecting 14th Amendment pushHeadline from KVIA El Paso · 9 outlets

February 2024

  1. Trump’s presidential bid hangs in the balance at the Supreme Court. Here’s what to knowHeadline from KSN Wichita · 14 outlets
  2. Trump Colorado ballot case goes before seemingly skeptical US Supreme CourtHeadline from KTVU San Francisco · 93 outlets
  3. Can Trump be on the ballot? It's the Supreme Court's biggest election test since Bush v. GoreHeadline from NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth · 15 outlets

January 2024

  1. Trump lawyers tell Supreme Court keeping him off ballot will unleash ‘chaos and bedlam'Headline from NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth · 16 outlets
  2. Massachusetts voters become latest to try and keep Trump off ballot over Jan. 6 attackHeadline from Minneapolis Star Tribune · 8 outlets
  3. Supreme Court to decide whether Trump can be taken off 2024 presidential ballotsHeadline from Fox7 Austin · 45 outlets
  4. Supreme Court agrees to hear Colorado case over Trump's 2024 ballot eligibilityHeadline from CBS News · 90 outlets
  5. Trump appeals Maine ruling barring him from ballot under the Constitution's insurrection clause​Headline from NBC 6 South Florida · 48 outlets
  6. Trump Asks Supreme Court To Overturn Colorado Ruling Kicking Him Off BallotHeadline from Forbes · 18 outlets

December 2023

  1. California keeps Trump on the ballotHeadline from Washington Times · 12 outlets
  2. Maine secretary of state who opted to keep Trump off primary ballot is facing threat of impeachmentHeadline from Minneapolis Star Tribune · 18 outlets
  3. Maine bars Trump from ballot as US Supreme Court weighs state authority to block former presidentHeadline from Wyoming Tribune Eagle · 98 outlets
  4. Michigan Supreme Court will keep Trump on 2024 ballotHeadline from NBC4 Washington · 62 outlets
  5. Trump ballot ban appealed to Supreme Court by Colorado Republican PartyHeadline from Foxla · 46 outlets
  6. FBI investigating after reports of violent threats to Colorado judges in Trump ballot caseHeadline from 6ABC Philadelphia · 7 outlets
  7. Police investigating incidents involving Colorado justices after Trump removed from state's ballotHeadline from MyNorthwest · 26 outlets
  8. California Lt. governor seeks to remove Trump from primary ballotHeadline from Fox26 Houston · 11 outlets
  9. Colorado GOP say they will cancel primary if Donald Trump isn't on ballotHeadline from Newsweek · 5 outlets
  10. Ramaswamy promises to pull out of Colorado primary in response to Trump getting banned from ballotHeadline from Washington Times · 6 outlets
  11. Trump barred from Colorado ballot – now what?Headline from The Conversation US · 126 outlets
  12. Michigan court rejects challenges to Trump’s spot on 2024 primary ballotHeadline from Washington Times · 5 outlets

Coverage & sources

Read the reports, see how much was collected over time, or compare outlets by political leaning.

Coverage & sources →