Maine Won’t Put Chris Christie on Its 2024 Republican Primary Ballot

by
Steve MacDonald

Twenty days ago, we reported on a muck-up in Maine (that’s muck, with an ‘m’). Team Christie, or so the State claimed, had failed to provide 2000 in-state signatures (of certified registered voters) as required by law. The campaign appealed, and the State Supreme Court has ruled.

He’s not Republican enough.

That’s a joke (or is it?). The State’s highest court did not find adequate proof that the campaign had provided the required signatures, so Christie is off the ballot.

 

The decision was made after Christie’s campaign brought an appeal in response to a previous decision by Secretary of State Shenna Bellows that the anti-Trump politician did not gather the necessary 2,000 certified signatures, according to Trending Politics. The Christie campaign turned in just 844 signatures, Bellows said.

“We appreciate that the court upheld the integrity of Maine’s well-established ballot access requirements. Every candidate, including presidential candidates, must follow the law to qualify for the ballot. We are glad that the court recognized that Maine law is workable and fair to all,” she said.

 

Maine offers twenty delegates to the GOP convention – two fewer than New Hampshire’s twenty-two (if my quick search results are accurate), so it is not a meaningless loss. Maine’s primary is on Super Tuesday, and if Christie is still in it, he could use all the help he can get, but it won’t come from Vacationland (I predicted he’d be out by then and backing Haley here).

If Christie does stick it out until Super Tuesday, I don’t think a campaign that can’t put 2000 verifiable signatures in front of the Secretary of State would invest in a write-in campaign. It’s not like he’s Joe Biden or something. Jeesh.

By the way, candidates or PACs running ads in New Hampshire who are not Trump, claiming they are the only candidate Trump is attacking, are lying. Have you been to a Trump rally? Trump cuts loose on everyone. But at the Ralley in Claremont, he had Gov. Christie’s back. After someone in the audience shouted it out, he must have come to his defense at least a half dozen times. You can’t call Chris Christie a fat pig.

He did; I was there.

No polling for Maine, by the way. I looked. But I can’t imagine Christie is polling better there than Asa Hutchinson which is a number that looks a log like a donut.

 

Author

  • Steve MacDonald

    Steve is a long-time New Hampshire resident, blogger, and a member of the Board of directors of The 603 Alliance. He is the owner of Grok Media LLC and the Managing Editor of GraniteGrok.com, a former board member of the Republican Liberty Caucus of New Hampshire, and a past contributor to the Franklin Center for Public Policy.

Share to...