Members from the Assembly Republican Caucus Joined Asm. Essayli in Response to Lt. Gov. Letter Calling on Weber to Remove Trump
SACRAMENTO, Calif., – Assemblyman Bill Essayli sent a letter to Secretary of State Shirley Weber urging her to not remove President Trump from the 2024 California ballot. This followed a letter earlier today from Lieutenant Governor Eleni Kounalakis calling on Secretary Weber to remove President Trump from the 2024 California ballot.
“When the Lieutenant Governor of the largest state in the nation pressures the Secretary of State to unilaterally remove a candidate for President from our ballot, we cannot be silent. This attack on our democracy violates our Constitution and decades of case law.” Asm. Essayli remarked.
“We are a government of the People, by the People, and for the People. The People must be free to elect the candidate of their choice without interference,” Asm. Bill Essayli added.
Click here to read the full letter sent to Secretary Weber today.
RE: Calls to Remove President Donald Trump from California’s 2024 Ballot
Dear Secretary Weber,I write in response to the letter submitted by Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis calling for the removal of President Donald Trump from California’s 2024 presidential primary ballot. Pursuant to the 20th Amendment to the United States Constitution and extensive case law on the subject, it is clear you do not have the authority to unilaterally remove a candidate for the Office of the President from our ballot. For the reasons explained below, and to protect the integrity of our democracy, I urge you to reject reckless calls to remove President Trump from California’s 2024 ballot.
The law governing this area is clear. Under Grinols v. Electoral Coll., the responsibility to address whether a President is qualified and whether he should be removed from office is reserved to Congress1—not the judiciary or a State Secretary of State. Further, Keyes v. Bowen held that the California Secretary of State had no discretion to investigate candidates’
credentials.
In a letter sent to you today by the California Lieutenant Governor, it was argued that removing President Trump from our ballot “…is about honoring the rule of law in our country and protecting the fundamental pillars of our democracy.” However, urging one person to remove a presidential candidate from a ballot to disenfranchise millions of voters is a direct attack on our democracy.
Although the California Lieutenant Governor and others reference President Trump’s “role in inciting an insurrection,” President Trump has not been convicted in any court of insurrection. In fact, he has not even been charged with insurrection. Of the 1,000+ criminal indictments related actions at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, not a single person has been charged or convicted of insurrection. We must respect the rule of law and not allow politicians to determine who is guilty of whatever crime they want.
The State of California previously attempted to keep then-President Trump off the 2020 ballot by attempting to impose additional, unconstitutional requirements to run for office, only to be rebuked by the California Supreme Court in a unanimous decision.3 The Court noted that Article II, Section 5(c) of the California Constitution requires a presidential primary to include the names on the ballot of all “recognized candidates throughout the nation or throughout California
for the office of President of the United States.”
Finally, Georgia’s Secretary of State, Brad Raffensperger – no friend of the former president – wrote an editorial that appeared in the Wall Street Journal4 arguing that he did not have the authority to disqualify Trump from the ballot, and that other secretaries of state should tread carefully as well.
Again, I urge you to respect the Constitution and do not bend to political stunts to remove President Donald Trump from our California ballot. We are a government of the People, by the People, and for the People. The People must be free to elect the candidate of their choice without interference.
Sincerely,
Bill Essayli, ASM 63
Joe Patterson, ASM 5
Vince Fong, ASM 32
Assemblyman Bill Essayli represents the 63rd Assembly District in the California Legislature, which includes the whole cities of Norco, Menifee, Lake Elsinore, and Canyon Lake, as well as portions of the cities of Eastvale, Riverside, and Corona.
Editors Note
Its likely that the US Supreme Court will rule on whether Donald Trump will appear on the Colorado Ballot as the Supreme Court has the final say about constitutional matters.
Last week, The California Secretary of State’s Office confirmed Friday that state law prohibits Assemblymember Vince Fong (D-Bakersfield) from running as a candidate for the 20th Congressional District of California because he had previously filed paperwork to run for reelection to the California State Assembly.
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