Note: At the end of this article, please see an addendum whose content may impact your interpretation of the following reporting and statements.

BY SCOTT STIFFLER | “In the interest of an open democracy” was the motivation cited in a March 11 statement from the campaign of Tony Simone, in which the candidate pledged “to not challenge any of my opponents’ petitions to gain ballot access for the upcoming primary for the 75th Assembly District.” Simone is one of six candidates (five Democrats, one Republican) asking voters to send them to Albany as successor to Richard Gottfried, whose final term will see him close out 2022 as the “longest-serving state legislator in New York’s history.”

Those vying for that office are currently in the Petitioning phase—during which each campaign must collect 500 signatures to prove the legitimacy of their candidate and, in doing so, secure a place on the Primary Day ballot. In years past, that meant a relentless routine of subway entrance/exit meet and greets, knocking on the doors of large residential apartment towers, and pop-up tables in neighborhood parks. When COVID-19 put the kibosh on such flesh pressers, many candidates in the 2021 election cycle sought to protect themselves and their volunteers by, well, petitioning to have the in-person petitioning process moved online or conduced in some manner other than the up-close-and-personal experience of interacting with a person, paper, a clipboard, and a pen.  Amidst the debate as to whether in-person Petitioning is necessary came a pledge by the candidates running for Speaker Corey Johnson’s NYC Council District 3 seat: No candidate would challenge the signature count or content of the others in the race.

To that end, Simone’s March 11 statement vows that he trusts “that my fellow candidates will responsibly collect the required number of valid signatures to qualify for placement on the ballot. Moreover, amidst a lingering pandemic and public safety crisis, New Yorkers should not feel their safety is being put at risk by an archaic ballot access process.”

Delving into the origin story of Petitioning, Simone noted the process that exists to this day was “originally created to make getting on the ballot more democratic, a reformist process that took over from party boss control. But decades later, it seems outdated, complicated, and needlessly anti-democratic. It stifles healthy competition by forcing candidates to hire election lawyers to assist in the process, thus taking money away from other campaign operations.”

If elected as an Assemblymember, Simone said he would support efforts to create “an online petitioning system and other common-sense reforms to modernize this system.” Simone concluded his announcement by stating he hoped “my fellow candidates will join me in this pledge.” Chelsea Community News is reaching out to the other candidates to see if they plan to abide by the pledge.

In addition to Tony Simone, the candidates are: Manhattan Community Board 4 (CB4) member Chris LeBron, current CB4 member and former CB4 Chair Lowell Kern, Manhattan Community Board 5 (CB5) member Layla Law-Gisiko, and former leader of the Reimagine New York Commission’s support for workforce and small businessess Harrison Marks,  This group of five, all Democrats, have been joined by Republican Joseph A. Maffia, who told Chelsea Community News that if invited, he would accept an invitation to join the five Dems as a participant in two upcoming Zoom-held candidate forums presented by, respectively, the Council of Chelsea Block Associations and the London Terrace Tenants Association.

Addendum: March 15, 2022 | Shortly after this article’s publication on March 11, candidates LeBron and Kern reached out to our editor, maintaining that Simone was aware others in the race had confirmed or declared interest in non-contesting, making Simone’s call for them to join him a bid to portray himself as an early adopter of what would have become a group effort. With that in mind, all five Democratic candidates and their Republican counterpart were invited to provide the below statements.

“We are happy that other candidates in this race are also willing to take the no-challenge pledge.”—Tony Simone, 3/13/2022

“The effort to sign candidates for non-contesting of signatures began with phone calls to Lowell Kern and Harrison Marks, two weeks ago. It was important to ensure that the health of both our volunteers and Board of Elections staff would not be placed at risk for what has, in the past, amounted to frivolous challenges of the veracity of signatures collected. I am proud to have started this conversation because it’s important that we put community first, over ourselves.” —Chris LeBron, 3/12/2022

“I spoke to Tony [Simone] about the idea of not contesting petitions a week ago [March 5] at Erik Bottcher’s inaugural event, and I told Tony that I had already been in discussions with the other candidates about not contesting petitions. My campaign will not contest petitions.”—Lowell Kern, 3/13/2022

“I’m proud to stand with my counterparts in this race to keep our focus and attention on connecting with voters rather than on petitioning challenges. I appreciate Chris and Lowell for initiating discussions of such a pledge and Tony for joining on.”—Harrison Marks, 3/12/2022

“I always trusted my opponents to responsibly to collect valid signatures, hence no intention to challenge. I’m pleased to hear that other candidates pledge to not challenge petitions.”—Layla Law-Gisiko: Candidate, Assembly District 75; Chair of Land Use, Housing & Zoning Committee of Community Board Five, 3/14/2022

“I will go a little further. I pledge not to challenge any of my opponent’s petitions during the entire election cycle for the 75th Assembly District seat. In addition, I will not ask any individual to challenge, nor will the Republican Party challenge, any petitions for the 75th Assembly District. Mr. Simone seems to limit his challenge to only the primary and leaves other challenges open.”—Joseph A. Maffia (Republican), 3/12/2022

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