The real work is about to begin for City Council candidates as the election season heads into the petitioning phase. In order for a City Council candidate to appear on the ballot for the September primaries they must collect 450 valid signatures by July 13.
However, these signatures must come from voters who live within the council district and they have to be registered in the party of the candidate seeking the signatures. In addition, voters can only sign one candidate’s petition.
This task is made that much more challenging when there are several candidates running from one party in a crowded field of candidates. No more is that more prevalent than in the race for term-limited City Councilwoman Darlene Mealy’s 41st Council district seat, where the majority of candidates are on the Democratic ticket. These candidates include Alicka Ampry-Samuel, Cory Provost, Deidre Olivera, Henry Butler, and Kathleen Daniel. Republican Berneda Jackson will have it a bit easier as the only GOP candidate running for the seat.
The 41st Council district covers most of Brownsville and parts of Bedford-Stuyvesant, Crown Heights and East Flatbush.
However, candidates, particularly those who have raised a lot of money, sometimes challenge the legitimacy of the signatures on their opponents petitions with the city’s Board of Elections (BOE). If successful, these challenges get their opponents thrown off the ballot. For this reason, many candidates turn in significantly higher amounts of signatures, two to three times more signatures than required, to ensure no challenges.
In fact, many candidates hold training sessions to ensure that their volunteers are well-versed in the details of a well collected list of signatures. Butler, for example, held a few training sessions this past week to gear up for the season. He is confident in his support in the district and is sure he will be on the ballot come September.
“I have the most donors in the race, which shows that I have the most grassroots support. These people are going to be out there getting signatures and making sure I get on the ballot,” said Butler.
Political clubs such as the New Kings Democrats (NKD) also to aid in the process of getting signatures. This year the progressive group will be petitioning on behalf of Ampry-Samuel as well as Ede Fox (District 35), Councilman Antonio Reyes (District 34), Reverend Khader El-Yateem (District 43) and Councilman Carlos Menchaca (District 38).
Ampry-Samuel is looking to use the petitioning phase of her campaign to meet with future constituents and listen to their stories.
“I look forward to gathering signatures throughout the district to guarantee my name on the ballot for the September 12th Primary. This process allows me to meet and greet voters and is a way to make sure we include the voice of the people. I plan to file my petitions at the end of the process which feels more like a journey,” said Ampry-Samuel.
