He knew it would be a battle.

Conservative Independent candidate, Evan McMullin failed to meet a very low threshold of signatures to gain ballot access in Tennessee.

McMullin, a long-shot presidential contender, has been scrambling to get his name on the ballot in states whose deadlines have not already passed. Last week, McMullin successfully made it onto the Iowa and Louisiana ballots, but he fell short in Tennessee, collecting just 129 of the 275 signatures required.

“Evan McMullin’s campaign did not submit enough signatures to be included on Tennessee’s ballot as an independent presidential candidate,” Adam Ghassemi, director of communications for Tennessee Secretary of State Tre Hargett, told POLITICO on Monday.

Then, on the other hand, McMullin has been successful in getting on the ballot in not only Iowa and Louisiana, but also Utah – all where the required number of signatures is much higher.

Another issue in Tennessee is their requirement for candidates to list their running mates, as well as electors who will be representing them. At this point, McMullin has not named a running mate.

With 77 days to go, McMullin isn’t prepared to name a potential vice presidential pick, although he has a list.

“We’re now below 10. People may come on and off that list. It’s a very, very early stage,” McMullin said.

Not quite right. Early for McMullin, but late in the game, as a whole.

It’ll be interesting to see who he picks, and how his continuing push for ballot access evolves.