Maine Lawmaker Calls For Impeachment Of SOS Shenna Bellows Over Trump Ballot Removal

Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows could be subjected to impeachment proceedings in the state legislature over her unilateral decision to remove former President Donald Trump from the state’s election ballot in 2024.

State Rep. John Andrews, who sits on the Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee, called the decision “hyper-partisanship on full display” before calling for a formal impeachment inquiry. The lawmaker announced that he has already filed a motion to set the ball rolling when lawmakers return from recess next week.

“I wish to impeach her on the grounds that she is barring an American citizen and 45th President of the United States, who is convicted of no crime or impeachment, their right to appear on a Maine Republican Party ballot in March,” Andrews said.

It is unclear how many Maine lawmakers will support an official impeachment inquiry, though Bellows’ decision has been condemned across party lines.

“There is bipartisan opposition to the extreme decision made by the secretary of state. She has clearly overstepped her authority. It remains to be seen if her effort at voter suppression will garner enough Democrat support to remove her from her position,” said House Republican leader Billy Bob Faulkingham.

At the federal level, only U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-ME) has come out in support of Bellows’ assessment that Trump incited an “insurrection” on January 6, 2021. Rep. Jared Golden (D-ME) was critical of the move in a press release, noting that while he voted to impeach Trump in the past, he cannot support the move until Trump has actually been found guilty of inciting an “insurrection.”

No such charges have been filed as of this report.

The move has also been met with skepticism from Senator Angus King, an Independent who generally votes with Democrats. King echoed Golden’s comments in saying that voters should be allowed to decide absent a conviction.

For her part, Bellows has defended the move and claimed she is “duty bound” to bar the presidential frontrunner from the race.