Will there be a Democratic primary on June 23 in New York?
Then-Democratic presidential candidate, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., left, and former Vice President Joe Biden gesture during a Democratic presidential primary debate on Feb. 19, 2020, in Las Vegas. Credit: AP/John Locher
More official clarity on that question may come at a 1 p.m. event on Wednesday titled “Determination of Publicly Suspended Campaigns” on the state Board of Elections website.
A section of this year’s budget legislation gives the board the power to “omit” a presidential candidate from the ballot if that candidate has suspended his or her campaign. Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders has done so, but indicated a desire to stay on the ballot, a way to influence the party platform going forward.
It’s a tender issue for a party wracked by ideological disputes, but there are indications that Sanders might be getting the boot. In an April 14 email to a Long Island assemblyman obtained by The Point, a regional representative for Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo’s office wrote, “On 4/8 you asked if Bernie Sanders's name will be taken off the primary ballot. Yes, we have confirmed that his name will be removed from the primary ballot.”
Cuomo spokesman Rich Azzopardi said, “Whoever said that wasn’t speaking for us.”
“That’s a decision solely made by the Board of Elections,” he added.
In a Tuesday HuffPost story, Douglas Kellner, the state Board of Elections Democratic co-chair, indicated winds swinging toward removal for Sanders: “I anticipate that we will be removing him.”
Whatever decision is made, it has to come relatively soon. State Democratic Party leader Jay Jacobs says May 9 is the deadline for production of ballots.
Mark Chiusano is a member of the Newsday editorial board.
