Monday, Aug. 14, 2023
Has Nevada banned Trump from the ballot?
Nevada has not banned the former president from the 2024 ballot, because no candidate is as yet on the state’s ballot — formal candidate filing for the 2024 presidential election will not open until October.
However, two activist groups — Mi Familia Vota and Free Speech for People — launched a campaign in late June to disqualify Donald Trump from the presidential ballot in several key states. That included sending a letter to Nevada Secretary of State Cisco Aguilar, citing the potential use of a little-used clause in the Civil War-era 14th Amendment.
That clause bars from public office any person who "shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof.” Used during Reconstruction, it has reemerged following the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, though whether it could apply over Trump’s role remains legally untested.
This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
- Nevada Secretary of State 2024 Nevada Election Information
- Free Speech For People Letter to Nevada Secretary of State Seeks to Bar Trump from the Ballot
- Congressional Research Service The Insurrection Bar to Office: Section 3 of the Fourteenth Amendment
- The Hill Activists want to disqualify Trump from ballot in key states under 14th Amendment
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