This could be a major snafu if Santorum pulls out a win in Ohio (which is looking increasingly unlikely). He did not make the ballot in some Ohio districts, and did not file a full list of delegates in others. And word has it that he planned his Super Tuesday victory party to take place in one of those districts.
Even if former Pennsylvania Sen. Rich Santorum pulls out a win in Ohio on Tuesday, he may not be eligible for a third of the state’s delegates.
He did not make the ballot in three congressional districts which automatically takes nine delegates out of his reach.
But, he also did not file a full list of delegates in six other districts including the new 10th district covering Montgomery, Greene and part of Fayette counties. In the 10th he filed one delegate and one alternate.
In the 8th District which covers Butler, Clark, Preble, Darke and Mercer counties, he filed two delegates and no alternates.
In the 4th which covers a large part of northwestern Ohio including Champaign and Shelby counties, he only filed one delegate.
The only Dayton-area district where Santorum filed three delegates is the new 1st District that includes Warren and part of Hamilton counties.
The holes add up to another nine delegates, for a total of 18 out of the 63 up for grabs. Santorum also did not file all 18 of his at-large delegates.
“He may very well leave delegates on the sidelines,” said Ohio Republican Party central committee member Bob Bennett. “Say he would win 70 percent of the state. He doesn’t have that many delegates.”
Mitt Romney says this disqualifies Santorum from being President. This may be the first thing Romney is right about.
“Rick Santorum has failed to get on the ballot in Virginia, has failed to file full delegate slates in Tennessee, New Hampshire and Illinois, and has failed to submit enough delegates in several Ohio congressional districts,” he said in a statement. “The fact that he cannot execute the simple tasks that are required to win the Republican nomination proves that Rick Santorum is incapable of taking on President Obama’s formidable political machine.”