Illinois election board allows Trump to remain on ballot, appeal expected

Former President Donald Trump will remain on the Illinois Republican primary ballot, per a state election board decision Tuesday, although the matter is likely to be appealed. 

In a unanimous bipartisan vote, the Illinois State Board of Elections dismissed the challenge to Trump's eligibility. The state panel determined that it did not have the jurisdiction to make a decision on the 14th Amendment argument invoked against Trump's candidacy. 

An appeal of the decision is expected to be brought in state court, according to CNN.

The request to remove Trump focused – like many of the same efforts in other states – on the 14th Amendment's Civil War-era insurrection clause, which prohibits elected officials who "engaged in insurrection or rebellion" against the United States from holding elected office again. 

The Illinois push to remove Trump from the ballot also alleged that the former president violated the state's election code through a "false swearing" in his Statement of Candidacy because he swore that he was "qualified" to run for president. The challengers said that Trump "falsely" stated that he was qualified because he should have been disqualified from running under the 14th Amendment. 

The U.S. Supreme Court is scheduled to hear oral arguments next week in a case involving Trump's candidacy arising out of Colorado, and the high court's ultimate decision will apply to all states.

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