Candidates across New York State will need to gather their clipboards — or plexiglass booths — and begin gathering thousands of petition signatures starting next week. State Supreme Court Justice Frank Nervo on Tuesday refused to grant a motion to halt ballot petitioning, the first step for any candidate to secure a spot on the June primary ballot.
Earlier this month, more than one hundred candidates statewide filed a lawsuit against Mayor Bill de Blasio and Governor Andrew Cuomo to try to block the process, arguing it was unconstitutional in light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic because it caused a direct threat to public health. They also argued it violated the equal protection clause of the state constitution because communities of color are disproportionately impacted by the pandemic.
Acknowledging numerous procedural problems with the filing, Justice Nervo ultimately said the plaintiffs overstepped by seeking a judicial remedy that would violate the separation of powers. The state legislature already passed legislation reducing the number of required signatures and the governor signed it into law.
“The amendments to the election law reducing the number of signatories for a candidate’s petition have a rational basis, namely the impact of COVID-19,” Nervo wrote in his decision. “That the plaintiffs would address the impact of COVID-19 differently, is a disagreement of judgment, not constitutionality,” he added.
Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, the lead plaintiff in the case, said they planned to appeal.
“But our most fervent appeal is to Mayor de Blasio and Governor Cuomo. The fact that the court is not legally forcing them to do the right thing at this time is neither reason nor excuse not to do it,” he said in a statement.
The decision came just a day after a virtual hearing where the attorney for the plaintiffs, Arthur Schwartz, argued candidates were being faced with the “horrible choice” of either risking exposure to COVID-19 to themselves and their supporters or not being able to run for office.
As Nervo asked questions about the plaintiff’s position — at one point asserting that irrespective of what government authorities recommend, people do come within six feet of each other for many transactional exchanges on a daily basis -- he proposed candidates set up booths on the street with plastic screens, almost like bank tellers.
Hours after the hearing, Schwartz sent a letter to the court about the many calls he received after the hearing from candidates who live in counties where setting up a booth is not an option and they would still need to go door-to-door to collect signatures.
In his ruling, Nervo acknowledged that COVID-19 would make in-person petitioning more difficult and require candidates to take heightened precautions. “However, legislators from across the State have determined that reducing the number of signatories required on a petition is the appropriate response to these impacts,” he wrote.
Starting next Tuesday, hundreds of candidates and thousands of volunteers will fan out across New York City to collect the required petition signatures. Some may set up booths, but more likely people will be knocking on doors, stopping shoppers outside grocery stores, and lingering outside transit hubs.
