Oregon Supreme Court Defers Decision on Trump Ballot Question Until U.S. Supreme Court Rules

The Oregon Supreme Court Court announced this morning that it will not immediately decide the question of whether former President Donald J. Trump should appear on the Oregon ballot later this year.

In a brief statement, the court said it would delay for, for now, any decision on the case in deference to the U.S. Supreme Court’s pending contemplation of whether Colorado’s decision last month to deny Trump a place on its ballot should stand.

The argument put forth by the plaintiffs in the pending Oregon case, Mary Lee Nelson, et al. v. LaVonne Griffin-Valade, mirrors the Colorado case: that Trump should be disqualified from running again under the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. That amendment disqualifies certain candidates who have taken part in an insurrection from future elections.

Attorneys for Nelson and other plaintiffs, led by Dan Meek and Jason Kafoury, filed a writ of mandamus with the Oregon Supreme Court, asking for an expedited ruling.

Oregon Supreme Court Asks Trump Attorneys, Opponents for Supplemental Briefs on Ballot Access Question

After the top Oregon court then asked the plaintiffs and attorneys for Trump for final briefs by Jan. 9, the country’s top court agreed to hear Trump’s appeal on the Colorado case. That’s why Oregon today placed its process on hold.

Here’s what the court said:

“The United States Supreme Court has set an expedited briefing and argument schedule in that case, with oral argument scheduled for February 8, 2024. Oregon’s presidential primary ballots must be finalized by March 21, 2024. Because a decision by the United States Supreme Court regarding the Fourteenth Amendment issue may resolve one or more contentions that [the plaintiffs] make in the Oregon proceeding, the Oregon Supreme Court denied their petition for mandamus.”