HARTFORD, Connecticut (AP) -- U.S. Sen. Joe Lieberman has enough voter signatures to secure a spot on the November ballot with a new party, Connecticut's secretary of state said Wednesday.
The certification means that Lieberman, who lost the Democratic primary to a political newcomer, will run for re-election as the candidate of the new Connecticut for Lieberman party.
He will face Democrat Ned Lamont and Republican Alan Schlesinger.
Secretary of State Susan Bysiewicz said Lieberman exceeded the 7,500 signatures necessary to get on the ballot as an independent.
The campaign collected more than 18,500 signatures.
"We are happy to have cleared this hurdle, so we can focus on bringing people together in Connecticut for a new politics of unity and purpose," said Dan Gerstein, Lieberman's campaign spokesman.
Lieberman lost the August 8 primary to Lamont, a Greenwich businessman who criticized Lieberman for supporting the Iraq war and for being too close to Republicans and President Bush.
The day after the primary, Lieberman submitted petitions to create his own political party and appear on the ballot.
A poll released last week showed Lamont gaining support in November's three-way Senate race,
But the Quinnipiac University poll showed that Lamont still has an uphill battle against Lieberman, the 2000 nominee for vice president.
Lieberman led Lamont among registered voters 49 percent to 38 percent. Republican Alan Schlesinger got support from 4 percent.
That's an improvement for Lamont, who trailed Lieberman 51 percent to 27 percent in a three-way race in a July 20 Quinnipiac poll. That survey of registered voters showed Schlesinger with 9 percent.
The poll quizzed both registered voters and voters likely to cast ballots in the general election. The July 20 poll only questioned registered voters.
Among likely voters, Lieberman was supported by 53 percent, compared to Lamont's 41 percent and Schlesinger's 4 percent.
Lieberman's advantage comes from broad support among unaffiliated and Republican voters. Fifty-three percent of likely voters said he deserves to be re-elected, and nearly half doubted that Lamont has enough experience to be senator.