A minor problem surfaces....

A potential Republican candidate to run against Sen. John Kerry in Massachusetts ran into problems:

In a major embarrassment to Republican leaders in Massachusetts and in the US Senate, Jim Ogonowski, the party's anointed candidate to challenge Democratic Senator John F. Kerry, failed by a razor-thin margin today to qualify for the GOP primary ballot.

With Ogonowski's stunning blunder, the only GOP name on the primary ballot will be Jeff Beatty, a little-known security expert from Harwich.

According to Secretary of State William F. Galvin's office, Ogonowski's campaign delivered just 9,970 certified voter signatures to its election division today just before the final deadline, 30 short of the 10,000 he needed.

I dunno -- just guessing -- but could it be that they had a hard time finding 10,000 people (particularly in Massachusetts) that were willing to admit being Republicans?

(h/t to Democratic Underground's Top Ten for this gem).