A Message from Suzanne Berger on the County Clerk Primary

WHITE PLAINS | APRIL 13, 2020 – Westchester County Clerk Tim Idoni, the candidate overwhelmingly endorsed by Democratic district leaders in February, filed more than 9,600 designating petition signatures last month to earn his place on the ballot. Yonkers City Councilwoman Shanae Williams also filed Democratic designating petitions with more than the required 600 signatures and will be on the ballot. No specific objections were filed to either petition; there will be a Democratic primary on June 22, 2021 (Early Voting: June 12-20, 2021).

County Clerk Idoni was also endorsed for re-election by the Working Families Party. More than sufficient petition signatures were filed, and the Working Families Party filed the required authorization (i.e., Wilson-Pakula).

And here, there is an interesting and—depending on your point of view—sad but devious twist.

A second Working Families Party designating petition was filed to designate Jennifer Malota, a Yonkers resident, for the office of County Clerk. Ms. Malota is an enrolled Working Families Party member, but guess who carried her petitions: the same Shanae Williams who wants to be the County Clerk candidate on the Democratic line. Ms. Williams became a Commissioner of Deeds in the City of Yonkers in January 2021, and witnessed nine signatures for her potential opponent. Ms. Williams’ Legislative Aide at the City Council, also a Commissioner of Deeds, also witnessed two of the petition’s eight pages.

How’s that for a candidate promising to be part of a new generation of leaders? It looks like Ms. Williams’ strategy was not to run on her own experience and qualifications, but to force her opponent to spend time and money simultaneously defending two primaries. So much for a new and transparent brand…

Whatever the intent, the Malota petition, even with the assistance of the Williams’ campaign, only purported to have 23 signatures in total (one more than the required minimum of 22). The Working Families Party was having none of those shenanigans. WFP Co-Chairs David Schwartz and Patrick Welsh filed objections with the Board of Elections to the Malota Petition on various grounds, and Friday the Board of Elections sustained those objections. Ms. Malota will not be challenging that determination.

There will be no spurious Working Families Party primary for County Clerk.