Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows slammed as she reinstates Trump on ballot after SCOTUS ruling

AUGUSTA, MAINE: After the United States Supreme Court decided in Donald Trump's favor on Monday, March 4, Maine's Secretary of State reversed her decision to prohibit the former president from appearing on the state's ballot under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment's insurrection clause.

Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows wrote in a modified ruling, “The US Supreme Court has ruled that individual states lack authority to enforce Section Three of the Fourteenth Amendment with respect to federal offices.”

“Consistent with my oath and obligation to follow the law and the Constitution, and pursuant to the Anderson decision, I hereby withdraw my determination that Mr Trump’s primary petition is invalid,” she added.

“As a result of the modified ruling, votes cast for Mr Trump in the March 5, 2024, Presidential Primary Election will be counted,” Bellows stated.

What prompted the Maine Secretary of State to reinstate Donald Trump on the state ballot?

Earlier on Monday, the United States Supreme Court issued a unanimous ruling, declaring that only Congress possesses the authority to enforce the 14th Amendment and disqualify federal candidates, according to The Hill.

The 14th Amendment was originally introduced to prevent former Confederates from returning to power.

This particular amendment disqualifies individuals who took an oath to support the Constitution and then engaged in insurrection from returning to office unless Congress votes to lift their disqualification.

It remained sparsely used for several decades until anti-Trump voters and groups started filing numerous lawsuits against the former president following the Capitol attack of January 6, 2021.

In December, last year, Maine became the second state to bar Trump from its primary ballots; Colorado was the first state to disqualify him.

A group of Republican and independent voters filed a lawsuit, supported by the nonpartisan Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), resulting in the Colorado court decision.

Bellows’ decision, marked the first time a state official removed a presidential candidate through the 14th Amendment.

“I do not reach this conclusion lightly. Democracy is sacred,” the Democrat Secretary of State of Maine stated at the time.

“I am mindful that no Secretary of State has ever deprived a presidential candidate of ballot access based on Section Three of the Fourteenth Amendment,” she added. “I am also mindful, however, that no presidential candidate has ever before engaged in insurrection.”

In her 34-page decision, Bellows wrote that the former President "was conscious of the tinder laid by his multi-month effort to delegitimize a democratic election, and then chose to light a match."

She later revealed that her office was flooded with a “stream of steady, abusive and threatening” messages directed at herself, her staff, and her family in the aftermath of her decision.

The Supreme Court's ruling gives Trump a significant advantage on the eve of Super Tuesday where he is anticipated to emerge as the Republican presidential nominee.

Notably, both Colorado and Maine will conduct their primaries on Tuesday, March 5.

Internet trolled Shenna Bellows after she reinstated Donald Trump on the state primary ballot

Critics on X mocked the Democrat Secretary of State for Maine after she rescinded the Trump ballot ban.

One X user remarked, "She should resign."

Another user claimed, "Now arrest and imprison Shenna Bellows for attempting to overthrow an election."

Another user wrote, "This insurrectionist Shenna Bellows should not be let off the hook so easily. Shenna Bellows needs to be investigated for attempting to overthrow a presidential election."

One user quipped, "If there's one upside to the ruling today, it's that Trump's defeat in November will feel even better than it would have."

Another X user said, "Arrest her for election interference."

One more user tweeted, "She should be withdrawn from office now"

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.