What Is the 14th Amendment, and What Does It Say?

Cases in Colorado and other states argue that Section 3 of the 14th Amendment prevents Donald J. Trump from being president again because, they argue, he incited the supporters who stormed the Capitol almost three years ago.

The central questions are whether Section 3 applies to the presidency; whether Mr. Trump’s behavior before and on Jan. 6, 2021, constituted “engaging in insurrection or rebellion against” the Constitution; and whether election officials or the courts can deem a person ineligible without specific action by Congress identifying that person.

The Colorado Supreme Court ruled that the answer to all of these questions was yes, but other courts have disagreed. The U.S. Supreme Court is likely to have the final say.

Section 3 of the 14th Amendment says:

No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice-President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States, or under any State, who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any State legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any State, to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability.

Constitutional experts have emphasized in interviews with The New York Times that the answers are not simple or self-evident.

In an academic article, the conservative law professors William Baude and Michael Stokes Paulsen concluded, “It is unquestionably fair to say that Trump ‘engaged in’ the Jan. 6 insurrection through both his actions and his inaction.”

Others have argued the opposite, with the law professors Josh Blackman and Seth Barrett Tillman saying in a recent draft paper that they saw “no sound basis” for Mr. Baude’s and Mr. Paulsen’s conclusions.