2 years ago
ALBANY, N.Y. — At least five Democrats on Thursday submitted the paperwork needed to appear on New York’s gubernatorial primary ballot this June.
One name who didn’t have a filing with the state Board of Elections? Former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, whose potential interest in a comeback campaign a year after he resigned in disgrace has provided grist for the rumor mill for months.
The filings on Thursday were not an absolute guarantee that Cuomo does not run.
If his supporters covertly knocked on tens of thousands of doors in recent weeks and every one of the people they interacted with kept it a secret, then he could still appear on the primary ballot if he put the signatures in a mailbox on Thursday and they arrived at the board by Monday — which is the final deadline. But most observers have thought that the scenario is unlikely.
A spokesperson for Cuomo did not return requests for comment on the former Democratic governor's plans.
Cuomo could still run as an independent or write-in candidate for the November election, but the rules for ballot access and fundraising are much more stringent than if he ran in the primary. He would have until the end of May to file as an independent candidate.
Cuomo aside, the Democratic primary will be competitive.
Gov. Kathy Hochul did not need to circulate petitions because she received 85 percent of the vote at the state Democratic Committee’s convention in February.
Everybody else needed to submit at least 15,000 petition signatures to get a spot on the June 28 primary. Since it’s fairly easy to get a lot of these thrown out for irregularities, the long-standing rule of thumb has been that the goal should be about 30,000.
Both New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams and Long Island Rep. Tom Suozzi submitted around 40,000, their campaigns said.
Hochul has a comfortable lead in a three-way race, according to a Siena College Research Institute poll released late last month. She received the support of 52 percent of registered Democrats to Williams’ 12 percent and Suozzi’s 11 percent.
Paul Nichols, who finished third at the convention with 2 percent of the vote, did not have signatures on hand with the board by the end of the day on Thursday. He said earlier this week that he planned to file enough.
Two other Democrats — Vladimy Joseph and Agha Muhammad Saleh — have also submitted petitions. But it appears neither was anywhere near the number required to get on the ballot.
On the Republican side, Rep. Lee Zeldin earned a ballot line when he was endorsed at his party’s convention in March.
Businessperson Harry Wilson submitted 36,000 signatures, his campaign said. Former Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino submitted 20,000 of what a spokesperson referred to as “solid signatures.”
Former New York City first son Andrew Giuliani filed to run, though his campaign did not immediately have a total number of signatures to share. Forest Hills resident Derrick Gibson, who has been actively campaigning to try to win over his party’s right wing, also submitted petitions.
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