Is Trump disqualified from NH primary? AG is reviewing whether it’s legal for him to participate

CONCORD, N.H. — The New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office is reviewing the legal argument over former president Donald Trump’s eligibility for the 2024 presidential race after his part in the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.

Attorney General John Formella and Secretary of State David Scanlan issued a joint statement Tuesday saying that their offices have been tracking a legal discussion over Section Three of the 14th Amendment and that Formella’s office is “reviewing the legal issues involved” at the request of Scanlan’s office.

The third section of the 14th Amendment to the Constitution disqualifies anyone who “engaged in insurrection or rebellion” against the U.S. after taking the oath of office from serving in a federal office.

Two conservative legal scholars this month pre-published an article arguing that Section Three prevents Trump from running for president again.

According to the Boston Globe report, Scanlan, who will oversee the first-in-the-nation presidential primary in just five months, said he’s received several letters lately that urge him to take action based on a legal theory that claims the Constitution empowers him to block Trump from the ballot.

However, Scanlan and Formella on Tuesday said there’s been “misinformation asserting or implying that the Secretary of State’s office has already taken a position on or is seeking to take certain action with respect to Donald Trump’s candidacy” in the primary, adding that neither office has taken a position on whether Section Three of the 14th Amendment applies to the upcoming election.

Trump is facing four criminal indictments, which include his handling of classified documents, efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election and hush-money payments made before the 2016 presidential election.

Scanlan told the Globe that judges are better equipped than he currently is to determine whether the campaign that culminated in violence at the US Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, triggers the 14th Amendment.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

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