Speaking of dogs that won't be in fights:
Gingrich and Perry fail to collect enough signatures to qualify to be listed on the ballots in Virginia.
Quote:
(Reuters) - Leading Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich has failed to meet the requirements to be in the primary election in his home state of Virginia, the state's Republican Party said.
The former Speaker of the House of Representatives defiantly pledged to run a write-in campaign for the March 6 primary.
Texas Governor Rick Perry also failed to make the ballot for the state's Republican vote. Only former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney and Texas Congressman Ron Paul qualified for the Virginia vote.
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Gingrich (and probably Perry, too) can have write-in campaigns, of course. But this seems like a bit of a blow to their campaigns. One effect working against them is that write-in candidates are not as likely to succeed, usually because they're just... not on the ballot, they're not known. They require more work on the part of the voter. These two candidates don't have that problem though, they are known, but will they be remembered? Another effect, the Republican party has chosen to allocate their delegates proportionally, so maybe they can gather some scraps even if their chances of winning are reduced.