Upheaval at NYC Board of Elections

Two Republican commissioners on the New York City Board of Elections have been replaced and two more resigned in hopes of ultimately keeping their positions, according to Republican New York City Council Minority Leader, James Oddo.

The resignations include the chairman of the board, Bronx Republican Commissioner J.C. Polanco, who might not be able to return. The commissioners from Queens and Brooklyn have been replaced, and the Manhattan commissioner also resigned, but may be able to return.

At the center of the upheaval is the New York City Council’s four-member Republican delegation, led by Mr. Oddo of Staten Island, who are taking advantage of errors by New York Republican County chairs and a little notice provision of state election law. The board, which gives final approval to the staff’s policies and votes whether or not to keep candidates on the ballot, is made up of five Democrats and five Republicans. Mr. Oddo said he wants energetic Republicans on the board representing the party.

The unexpected shift began when Queens Councilman Eric Ulrich noticed that the Queens Republican Party had forgotten to submit a letter to the City Council re-nominating its commissioner, Judith Stupp. It turned out that all five GOP county parties had forgotten.

State election law says that at “least thirty days before the first day of January … the chairman shall file a certificate of party recommendation [of board appointments] with the clerk of the appropriate local legislative body.”

That did not happen for any of the five Republican Borough chairs, and the appointment power now appears to fall to the City Council’s four-member Republican delegation, according to election law, though it’s also possible the move by Mr. Oddo and his colleagues could face a legal challenge.

Once word got out about the situation in Queens, according to Mr. Oddo, Brooklyn State Sen. Martin Golden lobbied for the replacement of Brooklyn Republican Commissioner Nancy Mottola-Schacher. She is getting bumped in favor of Simon Shamoun, a young lawyer and vice chairman of the Brooklyn Republican Party.

The new names are already listed on the Board of Elections website.

Fearing for their own positions, according to Mr. Oddo, Mr. Polanco of the Bronx and Manhattan Republican Commissioner Fred Umane maneuvered to try to keep them. On Jan. 31, Mr. Polanco resigned, then was re-appointed by the Bronx Republican Party, according to Mr. Oddo. And Mr. Umane submitted his resignation effective when a new Manhattan commissioner is appointed, which would presumably be Mr. Umane.

However, Mr. Oddo said that neither had the power to resign because their terms had already expired, and that the power to replace them lies solely in the hand of the council’s four-member Republican caucus. Mr. Oddo said that Democratic Council Speaker Christine Quinn’s office counsel also supports that view.

Next week, the Republican council delegation is expecting to meet with Manhattan and Bronx GOP leaders to determine whether Mr. Umane and Mr. Polanco should keep their posts.

Mr. Oddo said he also hopes his efforts will help break the longstanding gridlock in picking a new Board of Elections executive director. That requires the votes of six commissioners on the 10-member board, which means one member of the board must cross party lines. The board has been without an executive director since George Gonzalez resigned amid controversy in 2010.

As an independent activist, we have been asking for a change in the make-up of the board by replacing two of the board members and the future director with non-partisan independents.










NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote!

Michael H. Drucker
Technorati Tag in Del.icio.us

NY AG and New Disclosure Rules

Attorney General Eric Schneiderman is holding public hearings on new disclosure rules for nonprofits engaging in politics. It's the first of four hearings that will occur throughout the state, followed by Albany, Buffalo and Long Island, to allow members of the public to comment on new regulations in person.

Schneiderman wants to require that nonprofits, including 501(c)(4) organizations registered with the state, report how much of their expenditures go toward federal, state, and local campaigns.

Groups that spend at least $10,000 to influence elections in the state must file itemized schedules of expenses and contributions, and groups that spend $25,000 or more must disclose that information for every contribution over $100.

"This would bring new transparency in city and state elections, anytime there’s over $10,000 spent," said a Schneiderman spokesman.

Mayoral hopefuls Christine Quinn, Bill de Blasio, and Bill Thompson are expected to share their thoughts at the first hearing.










NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote!

Michael H. Drucker
Technorati Tag in Del.icio.us

NYC Mayor's Race for 2013 Begins

The road to City Hall is starting to get crowded.

"My wish for 2013 is that we elect a successor to this administration that is even better than what we've done," Bloomberg said.

The primary is currently scheduled for September but could be pushed up to June.

It now seems certain that Mayor Michael Bloomberg's successor will be chosen in a competitive General Election in November.

The most recent possible candidate is the former Metropolitan Transportation Authority chairman, Republican Joe Lhota, who has not officially declared his intentions. Former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani is poised to be a force in the race. Lhota was a top aid to Giuliani. He appears ready to promote his campaign.

Then again, neither have many of the other likely candidates for City Hall.

City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, a Democrat, is raising money for an expected run. So is Democrat Bill de Blasio, the City's Public Advocate. City Comptroller John Liu, a Democrat, is also expected to make a bid despite a campaign fundraising scandal. Bill Thompson is the only prominent Democrat to go public with his plans. He did so shortly after losing his challenge to Mayor Bloomberg in 2009.

Mayor Bloomberg is close with Quinn, but he is not offering any endorsements just yet.

There are other Republicans who may be running. Newspaper publisher Tom Allon switched parties to run on the GOP line. So did Doe Fund president George McDonald.

John Catsimatidis, the billionaire supermarket owner, is weighing a Republican bid, and former Bronx Borough President Adolfo Carrion and State Senator Malcolm Smith are in the mix as well. They would need approval, Wilson Pakula, from the Republican leader's to get on the line. They would also need this approval to run on any of the minor party's line.

A Wilson Pakula is an authorization given by a political party to a candidate for public office in the State of New York which allows a candidate not registered with that party to run as its candidate in a given election.

The name refers to the Wilson Pakula Act of 1947, authored by state senator Irwin Pakula and then-assemblyman (and future governor) Malcolm Wilson, which forbids candidates from receiving the nomination of a political party if they are not registered as a member of that party, unless they receive permission to enter the primary from party officials representing a majority of the vote in the jurisdiction.

It all adds up to a lot of potential candidates who have their eye on City Hall.

Update
New York City mayoral hopeful Adolfo Carrión Jr. is a leading contender for the Independence Party nomination, a ballot line that once helped boost Mayor Michael Bloomberg into City Hall.

"The leadership feels very positive about his candidacy, the fact that he's an independent, his message of nonpartisanship," party strategist Jacqueline Salit said Thursday. "The response to him has been very strong."

Ms. Salit stressed, however, that a formal vote hasn't been taken by the party's executive committee and that Mr. Carrión is still meeting with officials. A vote could come within weeks.

I will be part of the selection process.










NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote!

Michael H. Drucker
Technorati Tag in Del.icio.us

IPNYC 13th Annual Ant-Corruption Awards

Yesterday I attended the Independence Party New York City Organization's 13th Annual Anti-Corruption Awards and Fund Raiser. It sub-title was: Time To "GAL" Vanize" honoring Independent Woman. The two honorees were: Stephanie Orosco and Jacqueline Salit.

Stephanie Orosco - is a senior at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro studying Sociology and African-American studies. She took part in a state-wide survey of college students designed to better understand the political independence of students. She also is the founder of the UNCG College Independents.

Jacqueline Salit - is the President of IndependentVoting.org. She managed Michael Bloomberg's three campaigns for Mayor on the Independence line, and is the author of the recently released book Independent Rising. She made her off-Broadway debut in 2012, playing James Madison in the Castillo Theater's production of Sally and Tom (The American Way) which I really enjoyed.

Also attending the event were some 2013 Mayoral candidates: New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn(D), New York State Senator Malcolm Smith(D) running for the Republican line in the primary; and former Bronx Borough President and former White House Director of Urban Affairs Aldolfo Carrion Jr.(I) running for the Republican line in the primary.



Adolfo Carrion Jr. - "I have declared my independence. I will tell you that it feels good. Community matters more than party. I grew up in he city in the 1970s. I was a teenager. You know that city. We can't go back. It's going to require independent leadership."

Other 2013 candidates said:

In 2009, Bill Thompson received more votes for mayor on the Democratic line than Mayor Michael Bloomberg received on the Republican line, but Bloomberg prevailed in the unexpectedly close race thanks to the 150,073 votes he secured on the Independence Party line. Yesterday, Thompson, who is running for mayor again, said he'll seek the Independence Party's support this year.

Publisher Tom Allon, is a Republican candidate for Mayor of New York City in 2013. He is the owner of Manhattan Media. A Democrat-turned-Republican said he too would seek the Independence Party's support.

"A candidate's registration is not a deciding factor for us," Jacqueline Salit, a leader of the Independence Party said. "That's one of the great things about having fusion politics. But we're very gratified Carrion became an independent and we're very gratified that the three candidates came here today."

Another leading member of the party, Dr. Lenora Fulani, said we are open to talking with other mayoral candidates as well. They said they were interested in hearing mayoral candidates talk about rebuilding New York after Hurricane Sandy, and about electoral reform.



Mayor Michael Bloomberg made a cameo appearance saluting Jackie Salit on her award.

For now, the Independence Party's support is up for grabs and I am on the Selection Committee.










NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote!

Michael H. Drucker
Technorati Tag in Del.icio.us