Politics & Government

Maloney Signatures Okay, Judge Rules

GOP candidate still eligible to run in primary versus Scaturro, Becker.

A Nassau judge ruled that Dan Maloney has enough valid signatures on his designating petition to run against Francis Becker and Frank Scaturro in the Republican primary on Tuesday. Representatives from Scaturro's campaign had challenged in court the validity of some names on Maloney's petition, which was filed in July.
   
According to court documents, of the 1,578 signatures filed on Maloney's designating petition, 1,262 were found to be valid. He needed 1,250 to run in the primary. Some 300 signatures were deemed invalid, including 106 names of non-registered Republicans and 65 not registered at the correct address. Other discrepancies were found related to dates.
   
Maloney, a member of the Tea Party movement, maintained that Tea Party volunteers worked hard to get the signatures to ensure that he was able to run in the Republican primary.
   
"We're definitely in it for the long haul, and we're gonna win this thing," Maloney said, adding that Scaturro's people were playing dirty politics. "These are the same kind of tactics that Barack Obama used to win his election — trying to get your opponent kicked off the ballot. It's not the kind of thing the Tea Party condones."
   
The judge's decision, handed down Sept. 2, maintains the three-way showdown between Maloney, Scaturro, and Becker (the current GOP nominee), for the Republican endorsement in the 4th Congressional District. The winner of the primary will run against incumbent Congresswoman Carolyn McCarthy, a Democrat, in the November election.
   
Scaturro could not be reached for comment on this story. A representative at his campaign office said "we congratulate him for being on the ballot."


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