Please Collect Your Winnings if You Had Jim Gilmore at 17th in the GOP Presidential Free-For-All Pool

I blame Trump for this. Just because.

Former Virginia Governor Jim Gilmore filed the paperwork on Wednesday to join the race for the Republican presidential nomination, according to the Federal Election Commission.

Gilmore becomes the 17th candidate to seek the 2016 nomination, a field that includes former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, businessman Donald Trump and Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker.

Earlier this month, Gilmore, 65, told the Richmond Times-Dispatch newspaper that he planned to formally enter the race in the first week of August.

We have now gone from a former governor who some people still remember (Pataki) to one that no one outside of his home state knows exists. You may not be able to tell your kids that any American can grow up to be president, but you can assure them anyone can run for the office if he or she has one friend with money to spend.

The GOP field may yet fill to twenty candidates as there is speculation about formal announcements from a lost Bush brother, Caitlyn Jenner and the ghost of Warren G. Harding.