Gingrich campaign check bounces in Utah; may cost him place on the ballot

Not with a bang but a whimper.

The moribund campaign of former House Speaker Newt Gingrich has bounced a $500 check in the state of Utah, failing to pay the necessary fee for a place on the ballot for state's Republican primary next week, according to The Salt Lake Tribune.

But Gingrich, whose campaign has won only two states and has run out of money, dismissed staff and curtailed travel plans, shrugged off the development, telling CNN today that it was a "goofy" bookkeeping error.

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According to The Tribune, Utah Elections Director Mark Thomas said a Gingrich agent delivered the check last month but election authorities were informed by the bank that there were insufficient funds in the account. The state office has had no response from the campaign despite efforts to reach it through the telephone and email addresses given, Thomas said.

If the fee is not paid in the next nine days, the Gingrich campaign will be disqualified, according to The Tribune.

CNN spoke to Gingrich in Delaware, where he was campaigning, and he said this was just "one of those goofy things."

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"That check was drawn in December," Gingrich was quoted as saying. "The account actually was closed by the time they processed it. It wasn't a question of money – that particular bank account was closed."

The campaign switched banks at the start of the year, he said.