KEY: Dark green - Presidential primary Purple - Runoff election Black - Special election   Dark blue - Congressional primary Dark red - Filing deadline

SOURCES:   CQ Politics - Election Timelime   Wikipedia - Republican Presidential Primaries 2008   Wikipedia - Democratic Presidential Primaries 2008  NOTES: 1:  Colorado - Law allows for parties to nominate candidates in conventions, which must be held no later than 70 days before the primary.  The May 29 filing deadline, 75 days before the convention, applies to candidates who want to petition their way on to the ballot.  Candidates who attempted and failed to receive 10 percent of the vote at the convention cannot petition. 2:  Connecticut - Filing deadline is 14 days after the congressional district nominating convention.  Candidates who receive 15 percent get ballot access; those who get signatures of at least 2 percent of party enrollees in district also gain ballot access. 3:  Nebraska - There is a two-tiered filing deadline: February 15 for incumbents and March 1 for non-incumbents. 4:  New Mexico - The filing deadline for candidates who are seeking ballot access in a convention is February 12.  New Mexico law allows the parties to nominate candidates for Congress in conventions that award automatic primary to candidates who receive 20 percent of delegates' votes.  The convention must be held before the third Sunday in March, which in 2008 is March 16.  Candidates who fail to win automatic ballot access can submit new paperwork within 10 days after the convention or on the date all declarations of candidacy and nominating petitions are due, whichever is later. 5:  Virginia - Political parties our allowed to nominate candidates in conventions or in primary elections.  The filing deadline applies to the primary election.