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Because Donald Trump filed paperwork Friday for Ohio's Republican primary on March 15, he can't run as an independent in the state, according to Secretary of State Jon Husted's office.

(Steven Senne, The Associated Press)

COLUMBUS, Ohio--Donald Trump filed Friday to run as a Republican presidential candidate in Ohio, meaning that he now cannot run as an independent in the state next year, according to Secretary of State Jon Husted's office.

However, an elections law expert questioned that assertion, pointing to a U.S. Supreme Court case upholding the right of an independent presidential candidate to appear on the Ohio ballot.

Trump has repeatedly said he might run as an independent or third-party candidate if he's not treated "fairly" by the Republican establishment.

But under the Ohio Revised Code and case law, any independent presidential candidate running in the state must first disaffiliate with any political party "in good faith."

"Since Donald Trump has filed a declaration of candidacy with our office as a Republican, has filed with Federal Election Commission as a Republican candidate and voluntarily took part in the Republican presidential debates, the first of which was held in Ohio, there is no way for Mr. Trump to disaffiliate from the Republican Party 'in good faith' during this election cycle," said Husted spokesman Joshua Eck in an email.

However, Dan Tokaji, an Ohio State University law professor specializing in election law, said Husted's interpretation of the law is contradicted by a 1983 U.S. Supreme Court ruling on a case from Ohio.

In that case, Republican-turned-independent presidential candidate John Anderson was blocked from the 1980 Ohio general election ballot because he missed a statutory deadline to register as an independent candidate. The Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that Ohio's early filing deadline was unconstitutional.

Husted's office would keep Trump from running as an independent for a slightly different reason, "but it seems to me it's the same principle" as the Anderson case, Tokaji said.

Eck disputed Tokaji's conclusions, saying the Anderson case has "no bearing" on whether Trump can leave the Republican Party and appear on the ballot as an independent. The spokesman pointed to two recent federal court rulings that prevented Ohio candidates from running as independents because they were affiliated with a political party.

Trump could still theoretically run as a third-party candidate in Ohio. But the only recognized minor party in the state right now is the Green Party, whose left-of-center views are about as far away from Trump's as possible. And to create his own party, he would have to submit about 30,000 signatures to Husted's office by July 5 -- before the start of the Republican National Convention in Cleveland.

The billionaire businessman's campaign filed a slate of 63 presidential delegates with Husted's office. Trump's Ohio delegate list includes Butler County Sheriff Richard Jones, Cleveland-area Tea Party activist Ralph King, and activist Sara Marie Brenner, the wife of GOP state Rep. Andrew Brenner of Delaware County.

If Trump wins Ohio's March 15 primary, they would make up Ohio's delegation to the Republican convention in Cleveland.

The most recent Ohio Republican presidential poll, released in early October, showed Trump with a 5-point lead over primary rival Ben Carson, who has also threatened to run as an independent if he doesn't win the GOP nomination.

Carson, like other presidential primary candidates, has until Wednesday afternoon to file a list of national convention delegates with Husted's office. As of Monday morning, only Trump and ex-Florida Gov. Jeb Bush have filed, according to Eck.

Here is Trump's full Ohio delegate list: