America's highest court reversed a decision of the Colorado Supreme Court, which had determined Trump could not serve again as president under a rarely-used constitutional provision.

The US Supreme Court has now ruled unanimously that states cannot keep presidential candidates from appearing on ballots without action from Congress first.

The latest ruling applies to all states, not just Colorado, and it means efforts to remove him from ballots in places such as Maine and Illinois - which had been on hold pending today's decision - will also come to an end.

Speaking after the decision was announced, the former president said: "Essentially, you cannot take somebody out of the race because an opponent would like to have it that way.

"It has nothing to do with the fact that it's the leading candidate, whether it was the leading candidate or a candidate that was well down on the totem pole."

Trump is the frontrunner for the Republican nomination to challenge Democratic president Joe Biden in November's US election.

Section 3 of the constitution's 14th amendment prohibits those who previously held government positions but later "engaged in insurrection" from running for various offices.

The court in Washington DC ruled the Colorado Supreme Court had wrongly assumed states can determine if a presidential candidate or other candidate for federal office is ineligible.

The latest ruling makes it clear that Congress, rather than states, has to set rules on how the 14th amendment provision can be enforced.

Trump also called for presidents to have immunity from prosecution, saying: "If a president doesn't have full immunity, you really don't have a president because nobody that is serving in that office will have the courage to make, in many cases, what would be the right decision, or it could be the wrong decision."

His only remaining rival for his party's nomination is former South Carolina governor, Nikki Haley.

The former president's eligibility had been challenged in court by a group of six voters in Colorado - four Republicans and two independents - who portrayed him as a threat to American democracy and sought to hold him accountable for the 6 January riots in 2021.

In a bid to prevent Congress from certifying Mr Biden's 2020 election victory, Trump supporters attacked police, broke through barricades and swarmed the Capitol.

The Colorado Supreme Court said last December that Trump could not stand for election in the state because he had "engaged in insurrection or rebellion".

The judges there ruled Trump was disqualified because he had incited the 6 January riot.

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The Supreme Court, whose 6-3 conservative majority includes three Trump appointees, said on Monday: "We conclude that states may disqualify persons holding or attempting to hold state office.

"But states have no power under the constitution to enforce section 3 with respect to federal offices, especially the presidency."

The ruling came on the eve of Super Tuesday - the day in the US presidential primary cycle when the most states hold party nominating contests.