The Washington Times has this story, saying the North Carolina First Party failed to obtain the required 85,379 signatures to be on the ballot in 2010 and 2012. May 17 was the deadline. Here is the AP story, which is more detailed.
The story does not mention that the party is free to continue circulating and submit the signatures when it is finished, and then it would be on the ballot in 2012. The story also does not mention that the party could probably win a lawsuit against the May 17 deadline. North Carolina parties nominate by convention their first year on the ballot, so there is no state need for the deadline to be so early. The independent candidate petition deadline this year is June 10. Thanks to Doug McNeil for the link.