AUGUSTA, Maine (AP)   A Republican who’s running for U.S. Senate says he’s going to ask a judge to bar his primary challenger because of petitions that contained forged signatures from both living and dead Mainers.

State Sen. Eric Brakey of Auburn says there’s a “pattern of dishonest behavior.”

Secretary of State Matt Dunlap ruled more than 200 of challenger Max Linn’s signatures were invalid, but said there were enough signatures for him to qualify for the ballot.

The Sun Journal reports Brakey has said that Linn’s campaign is “trying to actively defraud our Maine election system” and shouldn’t be allowed to get away with it.

Linn responded via social media, saying Brakey was using “very nasty Swamp behavior.”