RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - Virginia's Republican Party has asked the state's elections board to delete a divisive loyalty oath from its March presidential primary ballot.

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Scrambling to meet a Friday deadline for publishing the ballots, the state GOP polled its governing central committee by phone and e-mail and, based on the results, asked State Board of Elections Executive Secretary Don Palmer to remove the proposed pledge.

The central committee authorized the oath binding voters in the March 6 primary to support the eventual GOP nominee in November.

The move was widely criticized not only by Democrats but many Republicans as unenforceable, unconstitutional and unappealing to a party that's trying to win public support.