Republicans have filed objections to knock Democratic State Senate contender Gregory Fischer of Calverton off the November ballot.
According to elections records, Leslia Sullivant of Port Jefferson filed objections to 796 of Fischer’s 1,475 signatures on nominating petitions. Senate candidates need a minimum of 1,000 eligible signatures to qualify.
Fischer started out as a primary challenger, but won the line when Democratic contender Lori Casar dropped out of the race. If his petitions survive the challenge he will face State Sen. Kenneth LaValle (R-Port Jefferson).
Elsewhere, Jun Policarpio of Douglaston is challenging party designee Elizabeth Berney of Great Neck for the right to face Rep. Gary Ackerman in November. Ackerman’s district straddles Nassau and Queens.
In addition, James Kapsis, once chairman of the Nassau’s Independence Party, has given freshman State Sen. Craig Johnson his authorization to run on the minor party line. Christine Imrie of Westbury has challenge that authorization and is represented by Ciampoli, attorney for the Senate Republicans.
Kapsis’ action comes after the state Independence Party decided to back GOP contender Barbara Donno, after county party leader Bobby Kumar promised to back Johnson. Democrats claimed the move was a “set up,” a charge Kumar denies.
--Rick Brand
Comments (3)
Again I comment that the GOP has no standing to challenge Democratic party's petitions. Only the candidate as a party aggrieved ( Pell ). Kapsis' Wilson Pakula can be used as toilet tissue. He should sue the State Committee to challenge the by-law change with an article 78 proceding and stop his illegal activities and restore home rule to the Independence Party
Kapsis and Ciampoli aren't going to get anywhere with this. The Court of Appeal ruling designed to let Frank MacKay strip Leonora Fulani of power also took all power from county committees. The court made sure of it by also knocking down the Suffolk WF committee and ruling that the State WF committee holds Wilson Pakula power.
There's much more to the 5th Congressional District petition issues than the article lists. The following press release was issued today:
Press Release – July 28, 2008
Republican Congressional Candidate Elizabeth Berney Requests Criminal Investigation of Opponents' Election Petitions: “Signers” for Policarpio Were Dead, Revealing Copying Scheme; 240 “Signers” for Rep. Gary Ackerman Were Fabricated
Elizabeth (“Liz”) Berney, the officially endorsed Republican Congressional candidate in New York's Fifth Congressional District, is requesting that State and Federal authorities commence criminal investigations of both of her opponents' election petitions for placement on the ballot in November. Objections to these petitions have also been filed with the New York State Board of Elections.
During an examination of Board of Elections signature "buff card" records in Nassau and Queens Counties, Ms. Berney's campaign team discovered that Republican challenger Jun Policarpio's petitions contained signatures of deceased persons and people who had previously moved out of the district. Ms. Berney's team learned that instead of collecting all the legally required signatures from current voters, Mr. Policarpio arranged to copy many signatures from previous years' election petitions. This copying from the past explains why many of Policarpio’s current “signers” were dead or out of the district.
Ms. Berney's team also discovered that approximately 240 signatures on 25-year-veteran Congressman Gary Ackerman's third-party petitions were fabricated: the persons and addresses did not exist. Ms. Berney's team was informed earlier that Rep. Ackerman was having difficulty obtaining enough signatures to be placed on this third-party ballot line. It appears that the Congressman and/or his campaign team then resorted to signature fabrication. Ms. Berney is calling for a full investigation to determine the persons responsible and the extent of the Congressman’s involvement.
In the 1990s, Rep. Ackerman was involved in the House Banking scandal, and resigned from the House of Representatives Ethics Committee in the midst of charges that he had improperly leaked confidential information.
Ms. Berney stated: "The petition process allows the voters to approve who will be on the ballot. Fabricating or forging signatures defeats the entire purpose of our election laws. It is a disgrace that persons holding or seeking an office of public trust would resort to such shameful tactics." Ms. Berney added: "I personally walked door to door with volunteers who were collecting signatures to place me on the ballot, and thoroughly enjoyed this opportunity to meet constituents in my district."
Ms. Berney is a graduate of the University of Chicago Law School (J.D., 1978) and Cornell University (B.S. 1975), and is a practicing lawyer specializing in securities fraud and consumer safety. She represented investors and consumers in the Enron, Parmalat, and Ford Explorer / Firestone Tire cases, and spearheaded investigations which uncovered fraud in several securities cases. She began her career as a tax lawyer at Dewey Ballantine, and litigated international and commercial cases at Holland & Knight’s predecessor. She lives in Great Neck, New York.
New York’s Fifth Congressional district includes northeast Queens (including Bayside, Jamaica Estates, Douglaston, Little Neck, Beechhurst, Whitestone and parts of Flushing) and northern Nassau County (including Great Neck, Manhasset, Plandome, Port Washington, Sands Point, Roslyn, Old Westbury, Albertson and East Williston).
Press Contact:
Norman Gersman – 516 972-3333
or LizBerneyforCongress@gmail.com