Colorado Republicans sue to remove Tancredo from gubernatorial ballot

Two Republican activists in Colorado have filed a lawsuit to get Tom Tancredo off the gubernatorial ballot after the former congressman threw a wrench in GOP strategy by launching a last-minute third party candidacy for governor.

Republicans Marian Olsen and Joseph Harrington filed a lawsuit Tuesday in Denver District Court arguing that Tancredo violated state and party law, Denver's ABC 7News reports. The plaintiffs allege that Tancredo's American Constitution Party candidacy is invalid because Tancredo was a registered Republican up until the day before he declared his third party candidacy,

"Tancredo's 11th-hour candidacy for governor was initiated for the express purpose of disrupting the process of selecting the Republican nominee for governor by primary election," the lawsuit states, according to 7News.

Tancredo is expected to appear in court Sept. 13 to defend his candidacy.

Tancredo entered the race in July because he was unhappy with the Republicans who had filed for the open seat race. Since then, Republican businessman Dan Maes secured the GOP nomination, but Maes has seen his campaign rapidly decline.

Maes claimed he worked undercover for the Kansas Bureau of Investigations, then said the claim was incorrect. Multiple Republicans have withdrawn their endorsements for Maes' candidacy, other former supporters have called for Maes to drop out, and the candidate's poll numbers continue to drop.

Just today, Republican Governors Association chairman Haley Barbour indicated during a Christian Science Monitor breakfast in Washington, D.C. that the RGA has no plans to lend future financial support to Maes. "We have put some money in Colorado. Past tense," Barbour said, according to Talking Points Memo.

It's not clear, in any case, how a ruling to strike down Tancredo's run in court next Monday would play out. Many counties have already printed ballots that include his name, and the state may be hard pressed to produce new versions of the ballots in time for the November election.

(Photo: AP/Chris O'Meara)