Anna Throne-Holst gets Working Families line in 1st CD race

Democratic congressional challenger Anna Throne-Holst will have the ballot line of the Working Families Party in her November race against freshman GOP Rep. Lee Zeldin.

The minor party last spring nominated Kenneth Schaeffer of New York City to run in the 1st District, even though the seat represents Brookhaven, the five East End towns and part of Smithtown. Schaeffer was eligible to run because a congressional candidate only has to live in the state to qualify as a candidate for any district in New York.

Schaffer was a place holder because Throne-Holst, a former Southampton Town supervisor, and David Calone, former Suffolk Planning Commission chairman, were embroiled in a June 28 Democratic primary that Throne-Holst won.

To free up the line for Throne-Holst, the minor party had to nominate Schaeffer for state Supreme Court justice, the only elected candidacy still open this late in the political season.

Two years ago, the Working Families line meant 5,457 votes or 3.16 percent. Four years ago in the last presidential election, the line brought in 11,561 votes, or 3.97 percent.