Asa Hutchinson and Chris Christie Fail to Make Maine Republican Primary Ballot

Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson (R) and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) are set to be absent from the Maine Republican primary ballot.

Though polling near the bottom, the two most outspoken anti-Trump candidates have refused to throw in the towel, even after higher-polling candidates like Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) and former Vice President Mike Pence dropped out.

The two now face another obstacle; Maine’s secretary of state and the Division of Elections have excluded them from the state’s primary ballot.

Heidi Peckham, Maine’s director of elections, told Christie in a letter, claiming both candidates failed to reach the 2,000 signature threshold to land on the ballot, he only collected 844 valid signatures in the state.

The former governor disputes this and wrote it off as a procedural error.

“The campaign collected and submitted over 6,000 signatures,” a Christie campaign spokesperson told CBS News. “This is simply a procedural issue with the way they reviewed signatures and is under appeal.”

Former President Donald Trump, Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL), former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, and Gov. Doug Burgum (R-ND) will appear on the ballot.

On the Democratic side, author Marianne Williamson failed to make the primary ballot.

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