Illinois Judge Tracie Porter has told lawyers she will temporarily pause her ruling that struck former President Donald Trump from the state’s primary ballot, putting the decision on hold after less than 24 hours—as the Supreme Court considers whether states can remove Trump from the ballot over the Jan. 6 riot.
Judge Tracie Porter issued a stay on her own ruling less than 24 hours after blocking Trump from the ... [+]
In the ruling on Wednesday, Porter found the Illinois Board of Elections’ decision to keep Trump on the ballot “clearly erroneous,” citing the post-Civil War 14th Amendment's ban on people who have engaged in insurrection holding office.
Porter immediately put the ruling on hold until at least Friday, anticipating an appeal from the former president’s attorneys.
Trump appealed the decision on Thursday morning, and Porter agreed to pause her ruling that afternoon until the appeal process is complete, the Cook County Circuit Court confirmed to Forbes.
Porter has not yet signed the order, but informed lawyers for the former president and members of the Illinois Board of Elections that she intends to do so later Thursday.
The stay means Trump will remain on the ballot for Illinois’s Republican primary on March 19.
Porter’s ruling on Wednesday hinged on an interpretation of the 14th Amendment’s insurrection clause, which bans people who have “engaged in insurrection or rebellion against” the U.S. government from holding political office. Officials in Colorado and Maine have taken similar measures to strike the former president from their ballots, and the Supreme Court is currently hearing a challenge to Colorado’s decision. The high court has not issued a ruling yet, but the justices expressed skepticism about the decision after oral arguments took place earlier this month.