Vivek Ramaswamy Hits Out As California Look To Bar Trump From Polls

Vivek Ramaswamy, tech entrepreneur and Republican presidential candidate, urged his party leaders to not participate in any primary polls that remove Donald Trump from the ballot. Hours after Colorado barred Donald Trump from the state polls, California Lieutenant Governor Eleni Kounalakis said they are exploring legal options to do the same.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Ramaswamy said, "Now California is trying to remove Trump from ballot, citing Colorado. (Ron) DeSantis, (Nikki) Haley, & (Chris) Christie should join me in pledging to withdraw from the primary in *any* state that removes Trump from the ballot."

The Indian-American leader said this is the only way to stop 'blatant interference' in the Republican presidential primary polls.

Now California is trying to remove Trump from ballot, citing Colorado.

DeSantis, Haley, & Christie should join me in pledging to withdraw from the primary in *any* state that removes Trump from ballot. That's the only way to stop blatant election interference in the GOP primary. https://t.co/5xvuLWRWGD

— Vivek Ramaswamy (@VivekGRamaswamy) December 20, 2023

Yesterday, the Colorado Supreme Court said Trump is "disqualified from holding the office of President under Section Three of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution." Section Three of the 14th Amendment ratified in 1868 after the Civil War, bars anyone from holding public office if they engaged in "insurrection or rebellion" after once pledging to support and defend the Constitution.

The ruling was the first to say that Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 election results render him ineligible to run again under a post-Civil War-era provision of the US Constitution that bans insurrectionists from holding public office.

Immediately after the ruling, Ramaswamy had vowed to not participate in the polls unless Trump is reinstated.

I pledge to withdraw from the Colorado GOP primary ballot until Trump is also allowed to be on the ballot, and I demand that Ron DeSantis, Chris Christie, and Nikki Haley do the same immediately - or else they are tacitly endorsing this illegal maneuver which will have disastrous… pic.twitter.com/qbpNf9L3ln

— Vivek Ramaswamy (@VivekGRamaswamy) December 20, 2023

"I pledge to withdraw from the Colorado GOP primary ballot until Trump is also allowed to be on the ballot, and I demand that Ron DeSantis, Chris Christie, and Nikki Haley do the same immediately," he said.