Only Pataki fails to submit signatures for Virginia primary

All of the top Republican and Democratic presidential candidates appear to have fulfilled the requirements to appear on the Virginia primary ballot, avoiding a replay of the 2012 election when several failed to qualify.

The Virginia Department of Elections said every candidate running for president, with the exception of former New York Gov. George Pataki, had submitted paperwork and signatures ahead of the 5 p.m. deadline on Thursday to get on the state’s primary ballot. 

{mosads}Candidates are required to turn in 5,000 signatures, with 200 coming from each congressional district. 

A spokesman for former Virginia Gov. Jim Gilmore (R) said he had accumulated 6,000 signatures. The elections department said Gilmore was the final candidate of the day to submit paperwork, with aides handing over the signatures at 4:48 p.m., just before the deadline.

A spokesman for Pataki has not responded to a request for comment.

The state parties will collect the submissions from the elections department and certify them over the next several days.

In 2012, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, former Speaker Newt Gingrich (Ga.) and former Texas Gov. Rick Perry failed to meet the state’s onerous requirements of collecting 10,000 signatures across the state and 400 from each Congressional district, leaving only Mitt Romney and former Rep. Ron Paul (Texas) on the GOP primary ballot.

The state cut the requirements in half for 2016.