The Independent View: NY Party Ballot Lines Change with 2018 Gov. Election

The New York Governor Election is where a Political Party gets a Ballot Line or Keeps their Ballot Line for the next Four Years, with 50,000+ Votes.

In the 2014 Governor's Election, the Votes for Party Lines were:

Dem (Democratic) - 1,811,672
REP (Republican) - 1,234,951
Con (Conservative) - 250,634
GRE (Greens) - 184,419
WOR (Working Families) - 126,244
IND (Independence) - 77,762
WEP (Women's Equality) - 53,802
SCC (Stop Common Core) - 51,492

As of November 2017, the Parties and No-Party Active Members are:

Dem (Democratic) - 5,621,811
REP (Republican) - 2,632,341
Blank (Independent) - 2,387,443
IND (Independence) - 436,312
Con (Conservative) - 145,421
WOR (Working Families) - 41,019
GRE (Greens) - 26,462
WEP (Women's Equality) - 4,374
SCC (Stop Common Core became Reform) - 1,802

The New York Working Families Party (WOR) Endorsed Actor Cynthia Nixon over Two-Term Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Saturday.

The WOR Endorsement all but Guarantees a Formal Nomination at the WOR Convention in May, and assures the “Sex and the City” Star a spot on the November Ballot, even if she Fails to Dislodge Gov. Cuomo in September's Democratic Primary. New York is a Fusion State, that allows Candidates to appear on the Ballot under Different Party Lines. Democratic Politicians often seek the WOR Line as a buttress, and its support has at times tipped the Scales in Democratic Primaries for Local Races.

Sensing the WOR Nomination was slipping from his grasp, Cuomo announced on Friday Evening that he didn’t want it anyway. Major Unions that have Endorsed the Governor pulled out of the WOR, continuing an Exodus of Cuomo-allied Unions that began in 2014.

A few Union Representatives spoke up on the Governor’s behalf anyway.

“He has shown his commitment to working families, he passed the [$15] minimum wage. Just this week he signed a bill on the Janus issue, which is very important to our members,” said Beverley Brakeman, Assistant Director of the United Auto Workers Region 9A. “The governor is the strongest candidate here and we think he’s going to win and we’re going to help him win. We’re very concerned about the process here, and we’re very concerned about this being a spoiler and hurting us all in 2018.”

WHO’S OUT

32BJ SEIU - Union President Héctor Figueroa said in a statement Friday night that 32BJ will leave the WFP and would not attend its state committee meeting over the past weekend. Before making the withdrawal official, Figueroa, a supporter of Cuomo, expressed concern that the Working Families Party would throw its support behind Nixon. According to financial filings, 32BJ gave the WFP $73,350 in 2017.

Communication Workers of America - In 2016, after the national Working Families Party nominated U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders for president, Bob Master, the assistant to the vice president of CWA District One, said the union’s national president would redouble the union’s commitment to the WFP. But in March, Master, who is also a co-chairman of the party, indicated his support for Cuomo and that the incumbent would likely get the nomination. On Friday afternoon, Dennis Trainor, vice president of CWA District One, released a statement saying that his union will leave the WFP. According the financial filings, CWA donated $204,150 to the WFP in 2017 and the first month of 2018. Local chapter 1180 donated $12,250 in 2017.

Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union - In a statement emailed Friday night, RWDSU President Stuart Applebaum blasted WFP state director Bill Lipton, saying that the party was no longer “the party we started all those years ago.” A spokesperson confirmed to City & State that as of Friday, RWDSU is no longer a member of the Working Families Party. According to financial filings, RWDSU gave the WFP $33,805.04 in 2016.

1199SEIU - The union withdrew its membership and funding in late 2014, due at least in part to the re-election of Cuomo, whom many unions have had close dealings with. At the time, the party came close to endorsing his opponent, Zephyr Teachout, instead.
United Federation of Teachers - In a statement on the union website, UFT President Michael Mulgrew called WFP state director Bill Lipton “misguided and delusional” for thinking the party still represents the interests of labor. He added UFT left the party “years ago.”

Hotel Trade Councils - Like 1199SEIU, Hotel Trade Councils was unhappy with the Working Families Party’s near-nomination of Teachout over Cuomo in 2014. It cut ties with the party soon after the election.

Transit Workers United - TWU has not paid dues to the Working Families party for “the past few years,” with president and Cuomo supporter John Samuelsen saying the creation of a new party for labor would be “a good idea.”

The Unions are deciding if they will create a New Party and Campaign for Votes to create New Ballot Line in 2019.