4 MAY 21, 2020 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM
Court upholds Cuomo’s executive order canceling
June 23 Queens borough president special election
election was extreme and unnecessary,”
his spokesperson said.
Quinn said that the outright
cancellation of the election was an
“unnecessary abuse of power that
deprives voters of their rights,”
adding that Cuomo could’ve just
adopted the absentee voting option
that is already taking place for other
elections on that date.
He related the issue to that of the
Democratic presidential primary
election in June, which a federal
judge ordered to reinstate following
a lawsuit from former U.S. presidential
candidate Andrew Yang and his
delegates.
But the court gathered that the
two issues differ.
In their decision, the court
stated the special election will
serve only to fill a non-legislative
and non-executive position for six
months and that there is already
an appointed individual — Acting
Queens Borough President Sharon
Lee — serving in the role until
the general election takes place in
November.
“This is clearly unlike Yang, where
the import of canceling a presidential
primary election would have
excluded large numbers of delegates
from the 2020 Democratic
Party Convention,” the court wrote.
“Furthermore, this court cannot
ignore the fact that, as Governor
Cuomo’s order to cancel the election
indicates, by bringing more people
into the polling places on June 23,
2020, there is an enhanced chance
that more people will contract and
spread COVID-19.”
The court, which held the hearing
for the case on May 14, also cited
how difficult it would be for the
Board of Elections to switch course
and produce ballots as well as meet
other requirements prior to the
June 23 election.
Additionally, the court pointed
to Quinn’s own decision not to petition
for the primary and his delay
in bringing the lawsuit as he filed
it several weeks after Cuomo issues
his executive order — and after
Yang won his lawsuit in reinstating
the presidential primary.
“Granting Quinn’s relief in light
of his own delay results in hardship
… and is well outside the expeditious
measures set forth in the Election
Law,” the court wrote.
The court also took note of how
the other five other candidates,
Councilmen Costa Constantinides
and Donovan Richards, former
Councilwoman Elizabeth Crowley
and former NYPD officer Anthony
Miranda, didn’t fight the decision
and adjusted their campaigns.
But Quinn wasn’t the only candidate
who filed a lawsuit against
Cuomo — Queens businessman Dao
Yin also filed a lawsuit shortly after
Quinn on Friday, May 8.
But unlike Quinn, Yin remains on
the ballot.
“We sought to assist Jim Quinn in
his attempt to get back on the ballot
in the special election, and given
that he has sacrificed so much to
run for office, it is unfortunate that
he is now out of the race,” said Yin.
The court’s decision goes for
both of the lawsuits, although they
varied somewhat. One of Yin’s main
concerns were about the thousands
of votes that were already cast during
early voting in March, before
Mayor Bill de Blasio postponed
the special election for June in an
effort to stop the further spread of
COVID-19.
“We are disappointed by the
court’s decision, which rests on a
related lawsuit filed by another
candidate and does not address the
particular facts of Dao Yin’s case,”
said Aaron Foldenauer, Dao Yin’s
attorney and campaign manager.
“Unfortunately, the decision will
be used as supporting precedent
if any other politician, including
Donald Trump, ever seeks to cancel
an election on account of an alleged
emergency.”
A Board of Elections spokesperson
declined to comment on the issue
and Cuomo’s office did not respond
to a request for comment.
BY ANGÉLICA ACEVEDO
AACEVEDO@SCHNEPSMEDIA.COM
@QNS
Queens borough president
candidate Jim Quinn is now
off the ballot after a court
upheld Governor Andrew Cuomo’s
executive order to cancel the special
election.
Quinn, former Queens Assistant
District Attorney who was running
on a law and order platform, only
filed petitions for the special election
and not the June 23 primary,
leaving him out of the race.
The special election 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 the
spread of COVID-19.
A spokesperson for Quinn told
QNS he is considering his options
on whether or not to appeal the
decision.
“We were disappointed in the decision,
particularly in light of the
fact that the judge agreed with the
merits of our case that canceling the Jim Quinn Courtesy of Jim Quinn’s campaign
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