U.S. President Donald Trump greets supporters after arriving in Air Force One at LAX Airport on April 5, 2019 in Los Angeles, California.
Michael Kovac | WireImage | Getty Images
In its ruling, the California Supreme Court said that the state legislature, which passed the ballot-related law last year, “may well be correct that a presidential candidate’s income tax returns could provide California voters with important information.”
But, the court said, the new law focusing on tax return disclosure conflicted with the state’s constitution, which says primary ballots must include those found by the secretary of state “to be recognized candidates throughout the nation or throughout California” for the office of president.
“Ultimately,” the court ruled, “it is the voters who must decide whether the refusal of a [presidential primary candidate] to make such information available to the public will have consequences at the ballot box.”
The ruling came in a lawsuit filed by the California Republican Party against Alex Padilla, the California secretary of state.
