Barr Wins Lawsuit; Remains On Pennsylvania Ballot

September 16, 2008 8:14 a.m. EST

Harrisburg, PA (AHN) - A Pennsylvania judge rejected a Republican county leader's lawsuit on Monday and ruled that Libertarian candidate Bob Barr can remain on the state's general election ballot.

Cumberland County Republican Party Victor Stabile filed a lawsuit last month seeking to exclude Barr from the state's ballot. Stabile claimed Libertarians had gathered petitions for ballot access using the name of another candidate before replacing it with Barr's. The court said in a 7-page decision on Monday "the Party simply took reasonable action to abide by the Election Code while furthering its legitimate interest."

Barr, a congressman from Georgia's 7th district from 1995 to 2003, has so far qualified for ballots in 44 states. Observers believe he could eat away at Sen. John McCain's (R-AZ) conservative base.

"We're happy that the Pennsylvania courts recognized the absurd nature of the Republican's lawsuit," Barr campaign manager Russell Verney said in a written statement. "It was very hypocritical of McCain to allow one of his agents to try to block a legitimate candidate like Congressman Bob Barr from the ballot. Fortunately, these hypocritical tactics of McCain's agents failed."

Pennsylvania is a key battleground state that has one of the largest number of electoral votes: 21. A candidate needs 270 out of the 538 total electoral votes from all states to win.