Cawthorn may be gone, but the case lives on, as a resolution of this issue must occur before a potential Trump rematch in 2024.
A three Judge panel of the Fourth Circuit, in a very narrowly written decision, overturned the trial court Judge on the issue of the Amnesty Act of 1872.
The Fourth Circuit reached the absolute commonsense result that was missed by the trial Judge.
The Amnesty Act of 1872 is NOT, nor can it be prospective. It granted relief from the provisions of 14.3 and restored their right to run for office. It did NOT repeal 14.3. Nor did it relieve FUTURE OFFENDERS from the provisions of 14.3.
Only a future Constitutional Amendment can permanently repeal 14.3.
The Congress in 1872 currently only INTENDED that the Amnesty Act apply to Civil War offenders.
And even if that Congress’s intention was to grant PROSPECTIVE relief, that prospective relief would have been unconstitutional. You cannot grant amnesty for a crime not yet committed.
Note: The court used the recurring controversies doctrine to avoid the mootness potentially caused by Cawthorn’s loss. Potentially, the appeals court could have sent the case back to the trial court to vacate its decision for mootness. But because this issue is a potentially recurring issue, particularly in 2024, it is moving forward.
The court only addressed this one issue from the trial court’s ruling, but it was an important issue.
I would note the one Judge who concurred in the judgement, but not in the opinion, would have dismissed the case entirely for lack of jurisdiction, which would effectively have let North Carolina election procedures continue.
The two majority Judges also noted that it is commonsense that States can enforce electoral qualifications, barring those under the required age, non residents, etc., from the ballot. If they can enforce those qualifications, then, commonsense, they can enforce 14.3.
