RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — White House gate crasher Tareq Salahi says he plans to run for governor of Virginia next year.

Salahi completed a declaration of candidacy. But that is meaningless until Jan. 1.

A State Board of Elections official says the agency that oversees Virginia elections can’t accept the declaration until the year in which the election is scheduled.

Salahi’s plan to run as a Republican comes just days after another GOP candidate for governor filed a lawsuit against Salahi and his winery. Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli claimed in the suit that the winery cheated customers who bought tours.

Salahi gained fleeting fame with his now estranged wife as uninvited guests to a 2009 White House state dinner.

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.