Virginia Appeals Court Rules Against Perry and Gingrich - East Idaho News
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Virginia Appeals Court Rules Against Perry and Gingrich

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GETTY P 122911 NewtGingrichRickPerry?  SQUARESPACE CACHEVERSION=1326837507737Alex Wong/Getty Images(RICHMOND, Va.) — A federal appeals court in Virginia has denied an emergency request by Gov. Rick Perry and Newt Gingrich to be placed on the ballot for the Virginia primary.

After failing to get the required 10,000 signatures necessary to be placed on the ballot, the candidates argued that Virginia’s strict ballot law was unconstitutional.

On Tuesday, a three-judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit agreed with a lower court and ruled that the candidates had waited too long to file their lawsuit.

The court ruled that Perry and the other candidates “had every opportunity to challenge the various Virginia ballot requirements at a time when the challenge would not have created the disruption that this last-minute lawsuit has.”

The court said that if it had ruled in favor of Perry, then it would encourage other candidates for president “who knew the requirements and failed to satisfy them to seek at a tardy and belated hour to change the rules of the game.

“This would not be fair to the states or to other candidates who did comply with the prescribed processes in a timely manner and it would throw the presidential nominating process into added turmoil”, the court said.

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