Kerry Challenger Fails To Qualify For Ballot

The Republicans’ leading candidate to challenge Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) failed to qualify for the ballot in the GOP primary, according to a statement released by his campaign.

Retired Air Force lieutenant colonel Jim Ogonowski, who ran against Rep. Niki Tsongas (D-Mass.), in a special election for the House last year, came 30 valid signatures short of the 10,000 signatures necessary to qualify for the September 16 primary ballot. Ogonowski was expected to be the Republican frontrunner against Kerry – but unless he mounts a legal challenge or a successful write-in campaign -- little-known security expert Jeff Beatty will be the Republican nominee.

Ogonowski is the brother of the pilot of American Flight 11, the first plane to hit the World Trade Center on Sept. 11.

In an interview with the Boston Globe, Ogonowski lashed out at Beatty for challenging his primary signatures, accusing him of resorting to “gutter politics.”

''The ease of which my opposition has distorted the facts and has created lies and innuendo to attempt to keep me off the ballot just illustrates why most Americans do not trust politicians and why Congress has such a low approval rating,'' Ogonowski told the Globe.

But Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee spokesman Matt Miller basked in the news that Ogonowski failed to qualify for the ballot.

"Getting enough signatures to make the ballot is campaign management 101, but with so many stellar recruits to focus on this cycle, I guess Senate Republicans just couldn’t meet such a high threshold,” Miller quipped.

The last highly-touted Congressional candidate who failed to qualify for the ballot was freshman Rep. Charlie Wilson (D-Ohio), who likewise fell short of the necessary signatures to qualify for a primary ballot in Ohio’s Sixth District. His campaign was forced to expend extra money to rally supporters to write in his name (with a catchy jingle), but he prevailed in the primary – and soon thereafter, easily won election to Congress.