The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday ruled 2-1 in favor of “faithless electors,” individuals who cast Electoral College votes for a candidate that is not chosen by the majority of the voters in their state.
“Unlike the president’s right to remove subordinate officers under his executive power and duty to take care that the laws and Constitution are faithfully executed, the states have no authority over the electors’ performance of their federal function to select the president and vice president of the United States,” Judge Carolyn McHugh stated in the court’s opinion.
The case, based out of Colorado, goes back to the 2016 presidential election, when three Democratic Party electors, Micheal Baca, Polly Baca, and Robert Nemanich, were mandated by state law to vote for Hillary Clinton after voters in the state voted for her.
However, in a coordinated national failed attempt to keep President Trump from collecting the necessary 270 electoral votes to win the presidency, the three voted for former Republican Ohio Gov. John Kasich.
The Democratic electors claimed they were concerned Trump won the election because of foreign interference in the 2016 election.
According to the Colorado Independent, the electors called themselves the “Hamilton Electors,” naming themselves after Founding Father Alexander Hamilton, who referenced the Electoral College in Federalist Paper No. 68.
Michael Baca was subsequently replaced by another elector who voted for Clinton and the other two electors ultimately voted for the former secretary of state, but the trio sued the Colorado secretary of state’s office thereafter. In December 2016, Baca called on Democratic lawmakers to provide him with an intelligence briefing on Trump.
Although a lower court initially dismissed the three electors’ case, saying they lacked standing, the 10th Circuit’s opinion partially reversed this decision. This ruling only affects Colorado and five other states in the 10th Circuit: New Mexico, Kansas, Utah, Wyoming, and Oklahoma. However, Colorado officials are still looking at all their options going forward.
“The idea that the 10th Circuit would be taking power away from Colorado voters definitely doesn’t sit well with me,” Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold told KUSA 9 News. “At this point, we’re looking at all legal and legislative solutions. Whether going to the Supreme Court is an option we will pursue that’s TBD.”
