Michigan Supreme Court Says No to Colorado Example, Refuses Bid to Remove Trump From Primary Ballot

Michigan's Supreme Court has opted not to follow Colorado's lead and has rejected a bid to remove former President Donald Trump from the state's 2024 presidential primary ballot.

Colorado's high court, of course, made a big splash earlier in December when it issued a ruling removing Trump from the ballot in the Centennial State. Since that bombshell ruling, there has been no shortage of criticism directed at the seemingly activist move by four of the court's seven Democrat-appointed justices, and the case appears headed for the United States Supreme Court in short order.

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On Wednesday, Michigan's Supreme Court reached a decidedly different conclusion.

A liberal-leaning group had appealed a state appeals court ruling that concluded, regardless of whether the 14th Amendment disqualifies Trump from holding office, Michigan’s secretary of state lacks the legal authority to remove him from the ballot.
The state’s highest court, controlled by Democrats, let that lower ruling stand, saying in an unsigned order that it was “not persuaded that the questions presented should be reviewed by this Court.”

The brief order, which can be viewed in its entirety below, consists of one paragraph from the majority and a three-and-a-half-page dissent from Justice Elizabeth Welch. Welch's dissent rests primarily on her belief that the issue should be decided on the merits rather than summarily dismissed. She notes that Michigan's election laws differ from Colorado's, and concludes that, under Michigan law, the Secretary of State must place Trump on the primary ballot, but leaves open the question of whether that would hold true for the general election.

As noted above, like Colorado, Michigan's high court is also Democrat-controlled, though there are three Republican justices, in addition to the four Democrats.

Minnesota's Supreme Court similarly dismissed a 14th Amendment challenge to Trump's inclusion on the ballot in November.

Michigan Order by Susie Moore on Scribd