 Colbert abandoned plans to run as a Republican due to the $35,000 fee required to file for the South Carolina primary.On November 1, 2007, it was announced that he would not appear on the Democratic primary ballot either, after being deemed ineligible by the South Carolina Democratic Party executive committee.Several days later he announced that he was withdrawing from the race, saying that he did not wish to put the country through an agonizing Supreme Court battle.