DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Gov. Terry Branstad has submitted the nomination petition signatures he needs to put his name on the ballot for re-election this year. The Republican governor on Tuesday turned in over 10,700 signatures to the Secretary of State’s office. The number exceeds the roughly 3,600 he needed to collect by March 14th.

Branstad says his signatures came from all of the state’s 99 counties – not just the ten counties required to be on the ballot. He says the signatures are evidence of his strong support across the state. Branstad is expected to face off with Democrat Jack Hatch, a state senator from Des Moines, in the general election. Hatch says he has gathered the necessary signatures and will submit them before the deadline.