The governor of California signed a law on Tuesday that would prevent President Donald Trump from appearing on the state’s primary election ballot unless he reveals his tax returns.
While there is little evidence that another Republican presents a serious challenge to Trump for re-election in the primaries, Democrats are trying to force the US president to hand over his financial documents.
“These are extraordinary times and states have a legal and moral duty to do everything in their power to ensure that leaders seeking the highest positions meet the minimum standards,” Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom said in a statement.
The law that went into effect on Tuesday does not mention Trump by name.
But the president of the United States broke with tradition and refused to release his financial statements when he launched his 2016 campaign.
The move comes at a time when Democratic lawmakers have opened investigations focusing on Trump’s tax returns as well as on issues related to Russian efforts to influence the 2016 elections.
The new California law implies that any candidate for the presidency of the United States must file a five-year tax return in order to contest the primary elections in the most populous state in the country.
The National Conference of State Legislatures said that 17 state legislatures had already introduced similar new bills this year.
Trump’s campaign team said state laws on the eligibility of presidential candidates were unconstitutional.
“The Constitution is clear about the qualifications for someone to serve as president and states cannot add additional requirements for themselves,” said Tim Murtaugh, communications director of Trump’s re-election campaign, in a statement to the Los Angeles Times .
Jay Sekulow, the president’s lawyer, said California law “will be answered in court,” according to US media.
