A Nevada-based federal judge dismissed a lawsuit that sought to bar former President Donald Trump from the ballot in Nevada after the judge found the Texas man who filed the case lacked standing to do so.
U.S. District Court Judge Gloria Navarro cited other federal district court decisions, including those in New Hampshire and Southern Florida, to reject similar cases filed by John Anthony Castro, a 40-year-old longshot Republican presidential candidate who has sought lawsuits to remove Trump from the ballot in multiple states under the argument that Trump is ineligible under the “insurrection” clause of the 14th Amendment.
“In rejecting his political competitor standing argument, courts have found that Castro improperly manufactured his standing merely to file this lawsuit,” Navarro wrote, citing evidence that Castro is running for office simply to pursue these lawsuits against Trump.
Navarro pointed to a Castro quote in an Associated Press article, in which he stated, “I’m not going to lie and pretend my candidacy is anything more than trying to enforce the United States Constitution, and that’s what I’m here to do.”
Castro filed to run in the state’s presidential primary, while Trump is running in the Nevada GOP’s presidential caucus.
In a statement, a Trump campaign spokesman heralded the Nevada court decision as a victory for the former president and Nevada voters and blasted other cases similarly seeking to bar Trump from the ballot under the 14th Amendment.