Supreme Court victory for Trump may not mean anything for Couy Griffin in NM

The U.S. Supreme Court issued a unanimous ruling Monday morning allowing former President Donald Trump to run again for federal office despite having participated in the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection, but it did not give the final word on whether a former local New Mexico official can run for a county- or state-level office.

A federal judge convicted former Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin of trespass for his involvement in Jan. 6. Authorities had held him in jail for 20 days, and the judge did not send him back.

A New Mexico judge ordered Griffin removed from the commission and barred him for life from serving in elected federal and state positions. The ruling marked the first time a court unseated an elected official as a result of participating in or supporting the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol.

Griffin appealed to the New Mexico Supreme Court, which threw out his appeal on procedural grounds and reaffirmed their dismissal in February 2023.

Griffin asked the U.S. Supreme Court to hear his case in May 2023. The justices have yet to decide whether to hear his case, according to court records.

Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington sued to bar both Griffin and Trump from office.

“While the Supreme Court has yet to rule on Griffin’s appeal, today’s decision applies to federal officeholders, while state courts still may rule on state lawmakers,” said Jordan Libowitz, spokesperson for CREW, on Monday.

The 13-page unsigned opinion in Trump’s case quotes from previous cases saying state governments retain the power to set out their own qualifications for elected officials.

“Although the Fourteenth Amendment restricts state power, nothing in it plainly withdraws from the States this traditional authority,” the justices wrote. “We conclude that States may disqualify persons holding or attempting to hold state office.”