DeSantis rejects Vivek's call to withdraw from Colorado primary if Trump not on ballot

Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis this week said he would not withdraw from the Colorado Republican primary should former President Donald Trump not appear on the ballot, rejecting a call from Republican rival Vivek Ramaswamy to do so.

The Colorado Supreme Court this week determined that Trump engaged in an insurrection by inciting the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol Riot and deemed him ineligible to run under the 14th Amendment. Trump plans to appeal to the Supreme Court.

"I pledge to *withdraw* from the Colorado GOP primary unless Trump is also allowed to be on the state’s ballot, and I demand that Ron DeSantis, Chris Christie, and Nikki Haley to do the same immediately - or else they are tacitly endorsing this illegal maneuver which will have disastrous consequences for our country," Ramaswamy said at the time.

DeSantis declined to commit to withdrawing, saying on Newsmax "No, I think that's just playing into the left."

"I think the case will get overturned by the Supreme Court, but I've qualified for all the ballots, I'm competing in all the states, and I'm gonna accumulate the delegates necessary. That's the whole name of the game in this situation, but I do anticipate that decision was political and will get reversed," he said.

Ron DeSantis says he will not follow Vivek Ramaswamy’s lead and withdraw from the Colorado primary if Donald Trump is not on the ballot. pic.twitter.com/0EJZLj47CN

— ALX 🇺🇸 (@alx) December 20, 2023

The Colorado Republican Party has suggested it will cancel its primary altogether and hold a caucus should Trump not be permitted to appear on the ballot.

Ben Whedon is an editor and reporter for Just the News. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter.