Says upthread that RP did not qualify either. he was simply grandfathered in as was Romney due to being on the ballot in '08.
I have not seen confirmation of that info independently, but if so, then the procedure is flawed, not the candidate's endeavors.
For whatever reason Romney and Ron Paul did not undergo the certification process in 2012. Presumably it is because they were grandfathered in from 2008 somehow. (Ditto Obama)
The actual details are still unclear. It seems to be related to getting 15,000 sigs. We don’t know if the 15,000 sigs refers to 2008 or 2012. It is also unclear if the 15,000 number is enshrined somewhere in VA state law or is just a rule in the VA GOP.
I searched the Virginia Code of Law and found this (http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+24.2-545):
24.2-545. Presidential primary.
A. The duly constituted authorities of the state political party shall have the right to determine the method by which the state party will select its delegates to the national convention to choose the party’s nominees for President and Vice President of the United States including a presidential primary or another method determined by the party. The state chairman shall notify the State Board of the party’s determination at least 90 days before the primary date. If the party has determined that it will hold a presidential primary, each registered voter of the Commonwealth shall be given an opportunity to participate in the presidential primary of the political party, as defined in § 24.2-101, subject to requirements determined by the political party for participation in its presidential primary. The requirements may include, but shall not be limited to, the signing of a pledge by the voter of his intention to support the party’s candidate when offering to vote in the primary. The requirements applicable to a party’s primary shall be determined at least 90 days prior to the primary date and certified to, and approved by, the State Board.
B. Any person seeking the nomination of the national political party for the office of President of the United States, or any group organized in this Commonwealth on behalf of, and with the consent of such person, may file with the State Board petitions signed by at least 10,000 qualified voters, including at least 400 qualified voters from each congressional district in the Commonwealth, who attest that they intend to participate in the primary of the same political party as the candidate for whom the petitions are filed. Such petitions shall be filed with the State Board by the primary filing deadline. The petitions shall be on a form prescribed by the State Board and shall be sealed in one or more containers to which is attached a written statement giving the name of the presidential candidate and the number of signatures on the petitions contained in the containers. Such person or group shall also attach a list of the names of persons who would be elected delegates and alternate delegates to the political party’s national convention if the person wins the primary and the party has determined that its delegates will be selected pursuant to the primary. The slate of delegates and alternates shall comply with the rules of the national and state party.
Translation: The state party can set whatever rules it wants to include names in a presidential primary. It *must* include names that have 10,000 signatures.
The law says nothing about grandfathering in previous candidates (for or against). It is up the party, it appears. It looks like any grandfathering of candidates from the previous election is to be determined solely by the rules of the party.
Found it. The 15,000 sigs is a rule of the Republican Party of Virgnia. It basically says that if a candidate submits more than 15,000 sigs (600 from each congressional district), the petition is presumed valid (’shall be deemed to have met the threshold for qualification and will be certified’) with no additional requirements. Addresses and names are *not* checked.
So all Newt and Perry had to do is get 15000/600 and they’d be in.
See http://rpv.org/sites/default/files/2012%20Petition%20Certification%20Process_1.pdf
That would be wrong. There was no “grandfather” clause, and Ron Paul didn’t have 15,000 signatures, so he wouldn’t have gotten in under that rule.