Both sides are urging the Supreme Court to take swift action on Trump’s eligibility to run for office

Lawyers for the six voters who won a stunning statement from the Colorado Supreme Court that former President Donald J. Trump is ineligible to appear on the state’s primary ballot told the US Supreme Court Thursday that they would not oppose a review of that decision and asked the judges to take action with exceptional speed.

The voters’ request to expedite the case came the next day the Republican Party of Colorado asked the justices to review the state court’s ruling that Mr. Trump was subject to Section 3 of the 14th Amendment. That section prohibits officials who pledged to support the Constitution from holding office again after rebelling.

Mr. Trump has not filed a promised petition asking for a review of the ruling, and it is his general practice to move as slowly as possible in the legal proceedings against him.

But the Republican Party of Colorado the judges asked Wednesday to hear his own appeal of the decision.

“The historical significance of this decision cannot be overstated,” the party’s petition said. “The Colorado Supreme Court has removed the leading Republican candidate from the primary and general ballots, fundamentally changing the course of American democracy.”

In a motionLawyers for the party proposed a smooth schedule and asked the justices to resolve the case before March 5, when several states hold primaries on a day known as Super Tuesday. If not, they say, voters “will face great uncertainty and the electoral process will be irrevocably damaged.”

“Under the standard briefing schedules provided by the rules of this court, the case would not be argued and decided until well into 2024,” the motion said. “Meanwhile, 2024 is a presidential election year, with the first primaries and party caucuses set to take place in January and more than half of state primaries expected to be completed by the end of Super Tuesday.”

On their own initiative, the six voters who prevailed on the Colorado Supreme Court urged the justices to act even faster. They asked the US Supreme Court to order Mr Trump to file his petition by January 2 and for the justices to consider whether to hear the case at their private conference on January 5.

The voters said they would not oppose the party’s request for review of two aspects of the state court’s decision: that Section 3 of the 14th Amendment applies to the presidency and that no congressional action is required before the court can take action.

If the U.S. Supreme Court grants review, voters proposed arguments would be heard on Jan. 19.

Voting in Colorado is done almost exclusively by mail, and state officials will begin mailing ballots to voters in the state on February 12. before receiving their ballot and casting their primary vote,” the voter motion said.

The motion added that the case raises questions of “exceptional national importance.”

“Colorado, along with fifteen other states and territories, will hold its presidential primaries on Super Tuesday, March 5, 2024,” the filing said. “This motion seeks to expedite the court’s consideration of this petition and any petition filed by Trump, and any subsequent merits review, so that the important question of Trump’s eligibility may be resolved by this court before most primary voters cast their ballots.”