Donald Trump stays on Illinois’ ballot as the election board says it lacks power to remove him over January 6
- The hearing officer, a Republican, found a ‘preponderance of evidence’ showed Trump was ineligible, but recommended the decision be left to the courts
- The US Supreme Court is scheduled next week to hear arguments in Trump’s appeal of a Colorado ruling declaring him ineligible for the presidency in that state
Illinois’ election board on Tuesday kept former president Donald Trump on the state’s primary ballot, a week before the US Supreme Court hears arguments on whether his role in the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol disqualifies him from the presidency.
The board’s unanimous ruling comes after its hearing officer, a retired judge and Republican, found that a “preponderance of the evidence” shows Trump is ineligible to run for president because he violated a constitutional ban on those who “engaged in insurrection” from holding office.
But the hearing officer recommended the board let the courts make the ultimate decision.
The eight-member board, composed of four Democrats and four Republicans, agreed with a recommendation from its lawyer to let Trump – the front runner in the Republican primary – remain on the ballot by determining it did not have the authority to determine whether he violated the US Constitution.
Board member Catherine McCrory prefaced her vote with a statement: “I want it to be clear that this Republican believes that there was an insurrection on January 6. There’s no doubt in my mind that he manipulated, instigated, aided and abetted an insurrection on January 6.”