On October 3, John Anthony Castro voluntarily dismissed the lawsuit Castro v McGrane, 1:23cv-393. This is Castro’s Idaho lawsuit to keep former President Donald Trump off the Idaho Republican presidential primary ballot.
Also on October 3, he dismissed his similar Maine case, Castro v Fellows, 1:23cv-335.
On September 30, John Anthony Castro, the Republican presidential candidate who has filed numerous lawsuits to keep former President Donald Trump off various Republican presidential primary ballots, filed this brief in the Eleventh Circuit in his Florida case, Castro v Trump, 23-12111.
Castro defends his standing and says he will surely be on the New Hampshire Republican presidential primary ballot. New Hampshire lets anyone on a presidential primary ballot with no petition, and the filing fee is only $1,000.
On October 9, Michigan Court of Claims Judge Robert Redford expedited two similar cases that seek to bar former President Donald Trump from appearing on the February 27, 2024 Republican presidential primary ballot. The cases are Davis v Benson, 23-000128, filed on September 15; and Free Speech for People v Benson, 23-000137, filed October 2. They are being heard together.
Judge Redford is a Michigan State Appeals Court judge, and he also is one of the judges on the Court of Claims, which is a special court that only hears lawsuits against the Michigan state government. Judge Redford ordered the state to file its brief by October 16.
One of the lawsuits, Davis v Benson, also argues that the February 27 date for the Michigan presidential primaries is not legal, because the bill that passed moving the primaries to that date had not taken effect until a date later than February 27. Thanks to Thomas Jones for the case numbers.
On October 11, Colorado state district court Judge Sarah B. Wallace issued an opinion in Anderson v Griswold, 2023cv-32577. This is the case that seeks to prevent former President Donald Trump from being on the Colorado Republican presidential primary ballot in March 2024.
The opinion clears away procedural objections to the lawsuit, and confirms that the trial will begin on October 30, 2023. Here is the decision. It says that there is a benefit to the public in keeping unqualified candidates off ballots, but does not cite any authority, and ignores the fact that in the past, Colorado has printed the names of presidential or vice-presidential candidates on its ballots who did not meet the age-35 requirement. See pages 15-16.
