Former President Donald Trump has appealed an Illinois judge’s decision that made him ineligible in the state.
As a result, the ruling by Cook County Judge Tracie Porter, an elected Democrat, concluded that Trump is barred from office under the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution because he was involved in the insurrection on January 6, 2021, the attack on the Capitol.
Porter issued his decision on Wednesday night (28), but suspended it for two days so that Trump could appeal. Notably, she did not halt the decision beyond this period.
Trump’s lawyers asked this Thursday (29) that the pause be extended until all possible appeals are exhausted in the Illinois courts.
“Suspending the trial until the Illinois appeals courts decide this case would reduce the great risk of election confusion and logistical difficulties for election officials,” Trump’s lawyers wrote.
The case was brought to court after the Illinois State Board of Elections rejected the challenge on the grounds of lack of jurisdiction.
A retired Republican judge who was hired by the panel to hear evidence in the case concluded that Trump had not even engaged in an insurrection, but that only the courts, not the council, had the power to block him from the election.
The Republican party primaries in Illinois, which has many electoral delegates, will be on March 19.
