All Colorado justices who voted to remove Trump from the ballot went to elite East Coast schools

In a 4-3 vote, the Colorado Supreme Court issued a ruling on Tuesday to disqualify Donald Trump from appearing on the GOP primary ballot under a US constitutional provision preventing individuals who have participated in "insurrection" from holding federal office. This despite the fact that Trump has not yet been found guilty of any crimes to constitute this ruling.

The four judges who ruled to ban Trump from the ballot are Monica M. Márquez, Melissa Hart, William W. Hood III, and Richard L. Gabriel, and were appointed by former Gov. and now Senator John Hickenlooper. They are all Democrats, the Daily Mail reports.

Justice Richard L. Gabriel, a native of Brooklyn, New York, attended Yale University for his undergraduate then went on to obtain a law degree from the University of Pennsylvania. He was appointed to the state supreme court in June 2015.

Gabriel has been investigated for alleged harassment and gender discrimination, allegations put forth by a female law clerk in 2021. However, those claims have been unfounded, the Denver Post reports.

Justice Melissa Hart, a native of Denver, Colorado, attended Harvard Law School and was appointed to the Colorado Supreme Court in December 2017.

Prior to joining the state supreme court, Hart was a professor at the University of Colorado Law School. Hart was named in a Supreme Court-filed discrimination lawsuit initiated by a black applicant, Michele Brown.

Brown had lodged allegations against Hart and other judges, alleging that their denial of her employment as a rules attorney was age and racial discrimination. The case was later dismissed by a federal judge, according to the Daily Mail.

Justice Monica Márquez attended Stanford University for her undergraduate then went on to obtain a law degree from Yale Law School. She became the first Latina and openly gay justice to serve on the Colorado Supreme Court and was appointed in 2010.

Prior to this, she held the positions of Assistant Solicitor General and Assistant Attorney General, where she oversaw the Criminal Appellate Section and the Public Officials Unit. Additionally, she participated in an event organized in conjunction with Harvard Law School earlier this year.

Justice William W. Hood III graduated from the University of Virginia School of Law and went on to obtain an honors in International Relations from Syracuse University. He was appointed to the Colorado Supreme Court in January 2014, according to the outlet.

Prior to his appointment, Hood worked as a prosecutor and a litigation partner in Colorado's 18th Judicial District.

Former Democrat Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper spoke highly of Hood during his appointment, according to the outlet, and said: "Hood has consistently demonstrated an ability to fairly apply the law while administering justice. His breadth of experience on both sides of the courtroom is invaluable to informed decisions."

"I'm quite confident that you will become, in short order, an extremely positive member of this court," he added.

In the career-defining decision, the justices claimed that they did "not reach these conclusions lightly" and said they were "mindful of the magnitude and weight of the questions" before them. In his dissent, Chief Justice Brian D. Boatright argued that the constitutional issues were too intricate to be resolved during a state hearing. Justices Maria E. Berkenkotter and Carlos Samour also dissented.

The shocking ruling has been lambasted across the aisle and Trump's campaign team has announced that they will file an appeal.

This marks the first time a state court has determined that Donald Trump, the leading contender for the Republican presidential nomination, ought to be excluded from state ballots.

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) issued a statement on the ruling and called it a partisan attack.

"Today’s ruling attempting to disqualify President Trump from the Colorado ballot is nothing but a thinly veiled partisan attack. Regardless of political affiliation, every citizen registered to vote should not be denied the right to support our former president and the individual who is the leader in every poll of the Republican primary. We trust the US Supreme Court will set aside this reckless decision and let the American people decide the next President of the United States," said Johnson.