{"id":30835,"date":"2024-01-01T19:11:21","date_gmt":"2024-01-02T03:11:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/?p=30835"},"modified":"2024-01-01T19:11:22","modified_gmt":"2024-01-02T03:11:22","slug":"maine-colorado-officials-face-threats-after-trump-barred-from-ballots","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/2024\/01\/01\/maine-colorado-officials-face-threats-after-trump-barred-from-ballots\/","title":{"rendered":"Maine, Colorado Officials Face Threats After Trump Barred From Ballots"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Trump<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Former U.S. President Donald Trump, a 2024 Republican presidential candidate, greets supporters during a campaign event at the Whittemore Center Arena in Durham, New Hampshire, on December 16, 2023. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Photo: Scott Eisen\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“This behavior is unacceptable,” declared Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows while her Colorado counterpart, Jena Griswold, vowed that “I will not be intimidated.”<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

JESSICA CORBETT<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dec 31, 2023 (CommonDreams.org)<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Depending on the decisions of U.S. courts, former President Donald Trump won’t appear on 2024 primary ballots in Maine and Colorado\u2014recent developments that have led to threats against top election officials in those states.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trump is the GOP’s front-runner to challenge Democratic President Joe Biden\u2014who is seeking reelection next year\u2014despite the Republican’s ongoing criminal cases and arguments that Section 3 of the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution disqualifies him from holding office again because he incited the January 6, 2021 insurrection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In response to Maine voters formally challenging Trump’s eligibility under the 14th Amendment, Democratic Secretary of State Shenna Bellows barred<\/a> him from the primary ballot on Thursday\u2014though she suspended the decision until courts rule on any appeal, and his campaign plans to file one. A day later, her home was “swatted.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“We should be able to agree to disagree on important issues without threats and violence.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“We are away for the holiday weekend. We were not home yesterday when threats escalated, and our home address was posted online,” Bellows explained<\/a> on Facebook Saturday. “It was a good thing because our home was swatted last night. That’s when someone calls in a fake emergency to evoke a strong law enforcement response to scare the target. Swatting incidents have resulted in casualties although thankfully this one did not.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“This behavior is unacceptable,” she declared. “The nonstop threatening communications the people who work for me endured all day yesterday is unacceptable. It’s designed to scare not only me but also others into silence, to send a message.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After a hoax emergency call in which an individual claimed he had broken into the secretary’s residence on Friday night, Maine State Police “conducted an investigation of the exterior and interior of the home at Bellows’ request,” News Center Maine<\/em>reported<\/a>, citing state Department of Public Safety spokesperson Shannon Moss.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Moss said nothing suspicious was found,” the outlet noted. “The incident is still under investigation, and Moss said no further information will be released at this time.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Along with slamming the swatting, Bellows on Saturday called out “extraordinarily dehumanizing fake images” of her recently posted online, including by the Maine Wire<\/em>: “These dehumanizing images and threatening communications directed at me and people I love are dangerous. We should be able to agree to disagree on important issues without threats and violence.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Solidarity with Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows, and shame on Donald Trump and his allies for inciting – and normalizing – this violent stuff over the past decade. https:\/\/t.co\/euOhpai0KW<\/a><\/p>— Mehdi Hasan (@mehdirhasan) December 31, 2023<\/a><\/blockquote>