US Supreme Court begins hearing case on whether to disqualify Trump from presidential election

Colombo (News 1st) – The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday (8th) commenced hearing one of the most crucial cases in American history, which will decide whether former President Donald Trump should be disqualified from once again running for election, U.S. media reported.
Trump is challenging a verdict by the Supreme Court of the state of Colorado last December, that disqualified him from having his name appear on the ballot paper in that state, in the presidential election scheduled for November 2024. His candidacy has been challenged in 35 of the 50 states, all of which would be determined by the verdict in the Colorado case.
Trump is heavily favoured to clinch the nomination from the Republican Party, with all but one other contender having already dropped out of the race. This would likely set him on a collision course with incumbent President Joe Biden, who has all but clinched the nomination from the Democratic Party, also with just one challenger still in the race. U.S. politics has historically been dominated by these two parties.
The full 9-judge bench of the Supreme Court, headed by Chief Justice John Roberts and comprising five men and four women, began hearing oral arguments from lawyers representing the two sides. Six of the nine judges were appointed to the highest court by Trump and other presidents of the Republican Party, with only three having been appointed by presidents from the Democratic Party.
At issue is the 14th Amendment to the U.S. constitution, that prevents any person from holding public office if he or she had engaged in “insurrection” against the government.
The Colorado court determined that the violent storming of the U.S. Capital by a mob on January 6, 2021, in an attempt to prevent Joe Biden from being declared the winner of the 2020 election, constituted an “insurrection”. It further found that Trump had played a role in the insurrection.
The Supreme Court is expected by many legal experts to deliver its judgement next week.