Trump appeals Maine ballot decision, accuses secretary of state of bias

Former President Donald Trump appealed Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows's decision to remove him from the state's ballot last week, saying that Bellows should have recused herself because of bias toward him and that the 14th Amendment doesn't apply to state ballot decisions.

The ruling “was the product of a process infected by bias and pervasive lack of due process; is arbitrary, capricious, and characterized by abuse of discretion,” Trump's lawyers argued.

They further argued that Bellows “denied President Trump due process by failing to give him adequate time and opportunity to present a defense.”

Trump spokesman Steve Cheung also said in a statement that Bellows “went outside of her authority, completely ignoring the Constitution when she summarily decided to remove President Trump’s name from the ballot, interfere in the election, and disenfranchise the voters of her state.”

Because of the appeal, Trump will remain on the ballot in Maine until the Supreme Court weighs in, similar to a Colorado decision which is also being appealed.

Bellows and others who are desperate to get Trump off the ballot have decided that they are the final authority on whether Trump participated in an insurrection, despite no court having convicted him of doing so.