Ryan Daigle doesn’t care that Maine’s Secretary of State removed former President Donald Trump from the primary ballot.
He believes Trump will be on the June primary ballot regardless because the U.S. Supreme Court will restore Trump’s name to ballots nationwide, the Bangor resident said while sporting a Trump 2024 hat on Friday.
Maine became the second state to disqualify Trump from the Republican primary ballot on Thursday, when Secretary of State Shenna Bellows decided Trump’s role in inciting the U.S. Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021, was a violation of the 14th Amendment’s insurrection clause.
While Maine’s decision to block Trump from the ballot will likely not matter if the nation’s highest court hears the case, there has been a wide range of reactions across party lines. Many politicians and citizens seemingly agree that electing Trump should fall to voters, not with his removal from the ballot.
U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, a Republican who voted to impeach Trump, said the decision should be overturned because it “would deny thousands of Mainers the opportunity to vote for the candidate of their choice.”
Democratic U.S. Rep. Jared Golden said Trump should be allowed on the ballot until he is actually found guilty of insurrection.
Maine’s Republican Party has used the decision to fundraise, asking people to donate to elect Republicans and get Bellows out of office. The Maine Democratic Party and Gov. Janet Mills did not respond to requests for comments.
Seventeen-year-old Hannah Legere will vote for the first time in June. She wouldn’t vote for Trump, whether or not he was on the ballot, because of his actions, including information that has come out in the court cases. Those cases include a civil lawsuit where he was found liable and ordered to pay $5 million for sexually abusing and defaming a woman.
“I honestly wasn’t going to vote for him because originally I agreed with what he stood for but right now … I really don’t 100 percent agree with everything he’s been doing,” she said.
Her boyfriend, Ezra Wildrick, said he’s indifferent to the decision.
“I try to vote Republican but I don’t always agree with everything he says,” Wildrick said.
Bangor resident Kit Merritt has mixed feelings about Maine’s ruling. She doesn’t want Trump on the ballot, but she’s concerned about the precedent this may set.
“He hasn’t actually been convicted of insurrection yet,” Merritt said. “But God, the guy has committed so many crimes.”
In general there should be stronger requirements for elected officials and people running for office, Merritt said.
Trump’s been a bad influence, especially on children, with the way he lies and acts, Winterport resident Will Drake said. Blocking Trump from the ballot was a late Christmas present or early goodwill for the New Year.
“It’s just a start to hopefully his demise,” Drake said. “He definitely needs to go away. We’ve had so many years of terror and lies.”
Trump can appeal the decision to Maine Superior Court. Bellows’ decision has state Republicans calling for her impeachment.
Bellows’ decision comes after Colorado’s supreme court disqualified Trump from the Republican primary ballot. The Colorado Republican Party has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to take up the issue and reinstate Trump.
If the U.S. Supreme Court does issue a decision, it would apply to all states.