RICHMOND, Va. --

The Republican Party of Virginia is challenging the ballot qualifications of the Constitution Party and Libertarian Party nominees for president, marking the latest twist in the high-stakes battle for Virginia's 13 electoral votes.

The State Board of Elections, meeting this morning, is scheduled to announce which presidential candidates qualified in Virginia for the Nov. 6 election and to determine the ballot order.

The meeting likely will take on a dramatic tone with former Virginia Rep. Virgil H. Goode Jr., the Constitution Party nominee, planning to appear in person to rebut the Republicans' claims.

"We believe the Republicans, in particular, are worried about this state and anything that would affect the balance in this state," said Mitch Turner, chairman of the Constitution Party of Virginia.

Turner said the Republicans "probably rightly believe" that Goode would take more votes from Republicans than from Democrats, though Turner believes the Constitution Party also has appeal for Democratic voters.

A spokesman for the state GOP was not immediately available to respond to Turner's comments.

In order to qualify for the presidential ballot in Virginia, a candidate must amass at least 10,000 valid signatures, including at least 400 from each of the 11 congressional districts.

On behalf of the state Republican Party, Christopher R. Nolen, a lawyer for McGuireWoods, sent a 28-page document, dated Thursday, to Charles Judd, chairman of the State Board of Elections, challenging Goode's ballot qualifications.

"The VRP's review shows that Goode has not submitted a sufficient number of valid signatures to qualify for the ballot in Virginia," Nolen's letter says. He says that although "Goode submitted approximately 19,981 raw signatures, approximately 36 percent of the signatures have material errors or omissions and cannot be counted."

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Va. GOP challenges ballot petitions of Goode, Libertarian