Senator Min Introduces 14th Amendment Eligibility Bill
(SACRAMENTO, CA) – Today, on the heels of the third anniversary of the January 6th insurrection at the United States Capitol, Senator Dave Min (D-Irvine) introduced Senate Bill (SB) 929, giving California’s Secretary of State the authority and obligation to determine a candidate‘s eligibility before placing them on the presidential ballot. The legislation covers the U.S. Constitution’s insurrection clause, Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, which stipulates that no person who engages in insurrection or rebellion against the United States shall hold the office of president, and potentially could result in Donald Trump being removed from California’s presidential ballot in November 2024.
“The United States is the greatest nation in the history of the world because it was founded upon two cornerstone doctrines—democracy and the rule of law,” said Senator Min. “This bill gets at the heart of both of these founding principles. The 14th Amendment’s Section 3 states in no uncertain terms that any elected official who commits insurrection against the Constitution of the United States, or gives aid and comfort to those who do, is ineligible to hold future office. While I recognize that many are uncomfortable with the proposition of actually applying this provision of the Constitution, I believe strongly that we are a nation of laws, and that the rule of law must apply to everyone equally, no matter how controversial that may be.”
“CREW applauds Senator Min for introducing this important bill to ensure that only qualified candidates for president can appear on the ballot,” said Noah Bookbinder, President of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. “Our Constitution has several qualifications to be president including requirements that the president be at least 35 years of age, a natural-born U.S. citizen, a U.S. resident of at least 14 years, has not previously served 2 terms as president and has not engaged in insurrection in violation of Section 3 of the 14th Amendment. This bill will require that the Secretary of State ensures that only candidates who meet these requirements will appear on the ballot. When voters go to the polls, they should be confident that a vote for their preferred candidate will be counted, and not discarded because their candidate is constitutionally unable to assume office."
The 14th Amendment, Section 3 reads as follows:
No person shall… hold any office, civil or military, under the United States… who having previously taken an oath… as an officer of the United States… to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof…
Numerous lawsuits have been filed around the country arguing that former President Donald Trump is ineligible to hold the office of President under the 14th Amendment’s Section 3 and therefore should be removed from the presidential ballots in those states. Such a lawsuit is currently not permitted in California, as state law has been found to prohibit the Secretary of State from determining the eligibility of Presidential candidates. SB 929 would revise California law to allow—and mandate—that the Secretary of State make eligibility determinations for the Presidential ballot, including under the Constitution’s Article II § 1 cl. 5 (citizenship and age requirements) as well as the 14th Amendment’s § 3.
To date, Colorado and Maine have found that Trump is ineligible to hold the Office of the Presidency and have removed him from the ballot. Litigation is currently pending before the U.S. Supreme Court on this issue.
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