This decision sparked controversy across America.
ADVERTISEMENTMaine ruled Thursday that Donald Trump cannot run for state president next year.
Trump was barred from the ballet by Secretary of the Navy Shenna Bellows due to his actions leading up to the 2021 U.S. Capitol riot.
Maine joins Colorado – which has also cited the cause of the insurrection – as the second state to disqualify the former US president.
Both decisions are on hold while the legal process unfolds.
While Colorado votes consistently Democratic, the divide between Democrats and Republicans is narrower in Maine, meaning it would be a notable loss for Trump.
“I don’t come to this conclusion lightly,” said Bellows, a Democrat. “I am aware that no Secretary of State has ever deprived a presidential candidate of access to the ballot based on Section Three of the Fourteenth Amendment.
“I am also aware, however, that no presidential candidate has ever engaged in an insurrection,” she added.
Trump, currently the favorite of right-wing Republicans, has vowed to challenge the decision. His supporters also criticized the decision.
“Make no mistake, these partisan election interference efforts constitute a hostile attack on American democracy,” said Steven Cheung, a Trump campaign spokesman.
Bellows is “a virulent leftist,” he said.
Trump’s political fate is now in the hands of the United States Supreme Court.
Maine’s decision will likely increase pressure on the nation’s highest court to come clean: Can Trump still run for president after the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol?
