In an effort to narrow the Democratic field, North Shore congressional candidate Jon Kaiman’s campaign has filed objections to Tom Suozzi’s candidacy petition filed last week with the state Board of Elections.
Though more than 2,400 people signed Suozzi’s petition backing him as a candidate, Kaiman’s campaign charges the former Nassau County executive did not have 1,250 signatures from active registered Democrats living in the Third Congressional District.
“Suozzi did not submit the required number of valid signatures, and thus is not eligible to run for Congress,” Kaiman campaign manager Jeff Guillot said in a statement Monday. “As was shown, by our successful filing of over 4,000 signatures, it takes only grassroots support and a strong organization to get on the ballot.”
The signatures in question could be from people registered under different parties or at an address outside the district, or those who signed more than one candidate petition.
In a statement on Tuesday, Suozzi campaign manager Mike Florio said Suozzi’s petition is valid and called Kaiman’s objections “sad attempts by his opponents to distract voters from the real issues” that come “straight out of the Republican playbook.”
Kaiman, a former North Hempstead town supervisor, collected the most signatures of the five Democratic candidates to replace U.S. Rep. Steve Israel in the Third District, which stretches from Whitestone, Queens to Kings Park in Suffolk County.
Other Democrats running include Suozzi, North Hempstead Councilwoman Anna Kaplan of Kensington, Suffolk County Legislator Steve Stern of Dix Hills and Levittown attorney Jonathan Clarke.
Kaiman’s and Stern’s campaigns also filed objections to Republican state Sen. Jack Martins’ petition for the Third District’s Independence Party line.
Martins, of Old Westbury, only collected 670 of the required 978 signatures, Guillot said in a statement, making his petition “fatally defective.”
Martins’ campaign strategist E. O’Brien Murray said the senator’s campaign “will be happy to address (Democrats’) attacks” after the June 28 primary.
“Whoever wins will be crawling across the finish line bruised and out of money,” Murray said in an email. “Jack Martins will be ready for them and will win in November.”
Martins has backing from Republican committees in Nassau, Suffolk and Queens counties, but faces his own primary against Glen Cove financial investigator Philip Pidot.
Stern’s campaign also announced three Suffolk County endorsements this week and launched the first TV ad of any of the candidates.
The Huntington Town Democratic Committee, Huntington Supervisor Frank Petrone and County Executive Steve Bellone all backed Stern, the sole candidate from Israel’s native Suffolk County, citing his commitment to Democratic party principles.
“Stern is strongly pro-choice and will fight back against Tea Party extremists who tried to shut down the government over funding for Planned Parenthood,” Bellone said in a statement. “North Shore Democrats can trust that Steve Stern will serve them proudly and work tirelessly for our local communities and our nation.”
Stern touted those positions and his support for eliminating the gender pay gap in his ad titled “Shop,” which focuses on his mother Idalee’s T-shirt shop, one of the first women-owned businesses in Stern’s hometown.
Stern’s campaign manager Isaac Goldberg said the campaign is making a “significant buy on cable across the North Shore” to put the ad on the air.
