POUGHKEEPSIE – Dutchess
County State Supreme Court Justice Peter Forman Tuesday will hear arguments
for and against the Women’s Equality Party in this November’s
election.
County Republican Chairman Michael McCormack filed a challenge to the
party seeking to keep it off the ballot.
The court challenge is “an attempt to invalidate the Women’s
Equality Party from existing despite the numbers of voters who supported
it,” said County Democratic Party Chairwoman Elisa Sumner. She said
the move “represents a new low for Dutchess Republicans.”
She said the Women’s Equality Party achieved the 50,000 vote threshold
in the last gubernatorial election, a number required by state law to
become an official party in New York.
The other new party created in last year’s election was also an
issue based party created by the Republican Pat’s gubernatorial
nominee, Westchester County Executive Robert Astorino. Called the Stop
Common Core Party, it also garnered the required number of signatures
to create a new party.
Sumner said the Republicans changed the name of the new party to “Reform:
where Republicans can run on an addition line in November while “negating
those voters who legitimized the Stop Common Core line last year.”
