Two Queens borough president candidates fi le lawsuits
against Governor Cuomo over canceled special election
BY ANGÉLICA ACEVEDO
Two Queens borough president
candidates have filed lawsuits against
Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the state’s
Board of Elections over his executive
order canceling the special election.
Candidates Jim Quinn and Dao
Yin filed each filed lawsuits on Friday,
May 8, in an effort to reinstate the
June 23 special election.
“We strongly believe — and there is
precedent with the federal judge’s ruling
on the presidential primary — that
the outright cancelation of an election
is an unnecessary abuse of power that
deprives voters of their rights,” said
Quinn.
Quinn, former Queens Assistant
District Attorney who’s running on a
law and order platform, only filed petitions
for the special election and not
the primary, leaving him out of the
race.
He said the Queens borough president’s
special election should take
place with absentee ballots.
“We support the governor’s executive
order expanding absentee voting
and believe this is a reasonable alternative
that protects public health
while still safeguarding democracy. In
fact, the governor himself has adopted
this solution for other elections occurring
on the same date,” said Quinn.
“The people of Queens have suffered
tremendously as a result of this virus,
but they should not have their rights
stripped from them as well.”
The special election for Queens borough
president was originally scheduled
for March 24 by Mayor Bill de
Blasio, but was later postponed until
June 23 due to COVID-19. Cuomo then
canceled it with an executive order on
Friday, April 24, in an effort to fight
TIMESLEDGER |4 QNS.COM | MAY 15-MAY 21, 2020
the spread of COVID-19.
While the special election may be
canceled, voters will still have the opportunity
to vote for a Queens borough
president come June 23, when they’ll
vote in the primary leading up to November’s
general election. Whoever
wins the November election will take
office on January 2021.
The candidates running for the
position include Councilmen Costa
Constantinides and Donovan Richards,
former Councilwoman Elizabeth
Crowley and retired NYPD officer
Anthony Miranda. Joann Ariola, the
Queens County Republican Party
chairperson, is running on the GOP
line.B
ut before the special election was
postponed in March, more than 2,500
residents cast their votes during early
voting.
Yin, a Queens businessman, is concerned
about the votes that were already
collected and believes the move
to cancel the special election is “illegal
and invalid.”
“Our campaign has spent significant
amounts of time and money
reaching out to voters of all types, including
Democrats, Republicans, and
independents,” said Yin. “For Governor
Cuomo to change the rules of the
game at the last minute in order to
benefit his cronies is an outrage.”
De Blasio has yet to address the decision
directly.
“Queens is in a crisis. Our hospitals
are overwhelmed. This election on
June 23 is the first chance for the people
to actually have their voice heard as
to how all residents of Queens can turn
the corner on this crisis,” said Yin.
QNS reached out to Cuomo’s office
for comment but did not receive a
comment.
Photos courtesy of Jim Quinn’s campaign,Office of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo, Dao Yin’s campaign
/QNS.COM
