This article by Ross Barkan is published by The Nation. Here is an excerpt:
In an unprecedented and little-noted ruling earlier this month, almost every Democrat running on the Working Families Party (WFP) line in New York City was thrown off the November ballot by the city’s Board of Elections. The move, based on a confusing legal technicality, highlighted the oddity of state election law, the cronyism of the board, and the desperate need for reform.
In all, nearly two dozen Democrats can’t run on the WFP line in the five boroughs—almost all of them City Council candidates. Most of these general election races in deep-blue New York are noncompetitive, so the progressive candidates themselves shouldn’t be deeply impacted in practice. There is one City Council race, however, in a swing district where the loss of the WFP line could cost the Democrat votes.
What happened exactly? Under a pandemic-era emergency law authorized by Governor Andrew Cuomo, candidates gathering signatures to reach the ballot can have these signatures either signed remotely—with a notary watching over Zoom or FaceTime—or even electronically, without pen and paper. The WFP filed certificates of authorization—documents needed for Democrats to appear on their ballot line—with electronic signatures. Outside of New York City, WFP candidates had no problem appearing on the ballot for November.
Read the full article here. Also, Democracy Chronicles has put together a cornerstone page with our latest on the Libertarian Party that you might explore next. Links to the Libertarian Party website and party platform are included too. Or you can see our overview of all American political parties at Democracy Chronicles Third Party Central.
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