Health & Fitness
Fair and Square?
Two Republicans, Frank Sparaco and Wayne Ballard, fought 'fair and square' for the leadership of the ultra-left wing Democratic Working Families Party claiming the system was being manipulated by the Democratic Party!
Be fair with others, but then keep after them until they're fair with you - Alan Alda
The Journal News reported on September 24, 2013:
A court ruling Monday gave Republican Clarkstown Highway Superintendent Wayne Ballard the absentee votes needed to win the Working Families primary. That means Ballard will be on four lines in the Nov. 5 election, including those of the Republican, Independence and Conservative. Malone questioned the validity of the ballots and the manner in which they were collected and delivered to the Rockland County Board of Elections. He named Ballard in his court petition “as the most likely beneficiary of the write-in campaign and unlawful absentee ballot solicitation program.” Unofficial results show that Malone collected 45 votes in the September 10 Working Families primary, while a write-in campaign brought in 29 for Ballard. On Monday, Ballard picked up 91 additional absentee votes to Malone’s 3. “I feel totally vindicated with regard to the judge’s ruling,” Ballard said. “It’s hard work that wins elections, pure and simple.”
Sitting in the court to hear the judge's ruling were two Republican Committee members, Vinny Reda, the Rockland County Chairman of the Republican Party and Frank Sparaco.
Omnia vincit labor - Hard work overcomes all things ......
On Monday, September 23, 2013 Legislator Sparaco's wrote on his Facebook page:
We won in Supreme Court today. The judge dismissed Dennis Malone's case on merit and procedure. Basically the judge chastised them for bringing forth such a frivolous lawsuit and commended Wayne Ballard and myself for working so hard and organizing a great absentee ballot drive. I'm proud to point out that Wayne Ballard now enjoys (the) Working Families line in November's general election. Hard work and a good campaign message will always beat intimidation and lowlife tactics like those we've seen from the Dennis Malone camp.
Here in Mr. Sparaco's own words to the court is how he worked to overcome "intimidation and lowlife tactics" ....
Q. Were you selective in any way in the persons who were approached and advised of the opportunity to vote by absentee ballot? How did you decide who to talk to about it?
A. I was not selective.
Q. How did you determine who to approach?
A. Well, I believe I started, we'd have to look at the applications .... I believe I started with the Working Families Party so I took a list of every registered member of the Working Families Party within my Legislative district because I assume they would most likely know who I am and have a relationship and it would be easiest to approach them first. I believe I went to the Working Families Party first and I went from door to door to every single member. No, that's not true. That's not true. Strike that. With the Working Families Party I looked through the list and I did target people that I thought I knew, so that is true. With the Independence and Conservative Party I went door to door just to every single person from one door to the next.
Q. Did you at any point recruit people to switch party?
A. Yes.
Q. When did you first recruit people to switch parties?
A. Approximately ten years ago.
Q. Did you ever recruit people to switch into the Working Families Party?
A. Yes.
Q. When did that start?
A. 2009 approximately.
Q. Are you registered in the Working Families
A. No.
Q. What is your present party at the moment?
A. I am a registered Republican.
Q. And for how long have you been enrolled as a Republican?
A. Since I first registered to vote.
Q. Why did you encourage people to switch into parties other than the one in which you are enrolled?
A. The Working Families Party is lacking leadership. They are now currently supposedly led by a registered Democrat and their screening committee is made up of registered Democrats. They have no organized committee or leadership, so therefore I felt the candidates weren't getting a fair shake at any type of screening or any type of interview process. I felt that the system was being manipulated and the parties had been highjacked by the Democratic Party. So I started to go, during my door to door campaign and I also have been, throughout the last ten years, very, very active with voter registration drives so when I would meet people, for example, Robert White. Robert White is a union delegate in the New York City Fire Department. I would explain to him that the Working Family Party might suit him when he registered to vote because it's a union party and they believe in his ideals. He then decided to register in the Working Families Party and become active.
Q. Would it be unfair to say that you recruited people with whom you had a good relationship to re-register or enroll in the minor parties because you felt that it would improve the minor parties?
A. I registered people into the minor parties because I did feel it would improve the minor parties. I felt that the local leadership of the Working Families Party, for example, lacked any type of organizational skills and was incapable of conducting and organizing a party. I felt that their screening and Wilson-Pakula process was flawed and that the best way to judge who gets that line should be left up to the will of the people, so I decided to leave and help organize, to get people in the Working Families to vote for the candidate of their choosing.
Q. You had said that in general you filled out most of the forms for the people who designated you to pick up the ballots. Did you fill out the forms for anybody who designated other people to pick up their ballots?
A. Yes, sir.
Q. And you filled them out before those other people signed them?
A. Yes.
Tempus omnia revelat - Time reveals all things ......
I like to see the difference between good and evil as kind of like the foul line at a baseball game. It's very thin, it's made of something very flimsy like lime, and if you cross it, it really starts to blur where fair becomes foul and foul becomes fair - Harlan Coben
This blog is authored by Michael N. Hull, a retired senior citizen who writes opinion pieces on local political issues. He is a Director of Clarkstown Residents Opposing Patronage with Tom Nimick and Ralph Sabatini. Hull contributes periodically to the Facebook page Clarkstown: What They Don't Want You To Know and on Twitter.
Omnia vincit labor - Hard work overcomes all things ......
On Monday, September 23, 2013 Legislator Sparaco's wrote on his Facebook page:
We won in Supreme Court today. The judge dismissed Dennis Malone's case on merit and procedure. Basically the judge chastised them for bringing forth such a frivolous lawsuit and commended Wayne Ballard and myself for working so hard and organizing a great absentee ballot drive. I'm proud to point out that Wayne Ballard now enjoys (the) Working Families line in November's general election. Hard work and a good campaign message will always beat intimidation and lowlife tactics like those we've seen from the Dennis Malone camp.
Here in Mr. Sparaco's own words to the court is how he worked to overcome "intimidation and lowlife tactics" ....
Q. Were you selective in any way in the persons who were approached and advised of the opportunity to vote by absentee ballot? How did you decide who to talk to about it?
A. I was not selective.
Q. How did you determine who to approach?
A. Well, I believe I started, we'd have to look at the applications .... I believe I started with the Working Families Party so I took a list of every registered member of the Working Families Party within my Legislative district because I assume they would most likely know who I am and have a relationship and it would be easiest to approach them first. I believe I went to the Working Families Party first and I went from door to door to every single member. No, that's not true. That's not true. Strike that. With the Working Families Party I looked through the list and I did target people that I thought I knew, so that is true. With the Independence and Conservative Party I went door to door just to every single person from one door to the next.
Q. Did you at any point recruit people to switch party?
A. Yes.
Q. When did you first recruit people to switch parties?
A. Approximately ten years ago.
Q. Did you ever recruit people to switch into the Working Families Party?
A. Yes.
Q. When did that start?
A. 2009 approximately.
Q. Are you registered in the Working Families
A. No.
Q. What is your present party at the moment?
A. I am a registered Republican.
Q. And for how long have you been enrolled as a Republican?
A. Since I first registered to vote.
Q. Why did you encourage people to switch into parties other than the one in which you are enrolled?
A. The Working Families Party is lacking leadership. They are now currently supposedly led by a registered Democrat and their screening committee is made up of registered Democrats. They have no organized committee or leadership, so therefore I felt the candidates weren't getting a fair shake at any type of screening or any type of interview process. I felt that the system was being manipulated and the parties had been highjacked by the Democratic Party. So I started to go, during my door to door campaign and I also have been, throughout the last ten years, very, very active with voter registration drives so when I would meet people, for example, Robert White. Robert White is a union delegate in the New York City Fire Department. I would explain to him that the Working Family Party might suit him when he registered to vote because it's a union party and they believe in his ideals. He then decided to register in the Working Families Party and become active.
Q. Would it be unfair to say that you recruited people with whom you had a good relationship to re-register or enroll in the minor parties because you felt that it would improve the minor parties?
A. I registered people into the minor parties because I did feel it would improve the minor parties. I felt that the local leadership of the Working Families Party, for example, lacked any type of organizational skills and was incapable of conducting and organizing a party. I felt that their screening and Wilson-Pakula process was flawed and that the best way to judge who gets that line should be left up to the will of the people, so I decided to leave and help organize, to get people in the Working Families to vote for the candidate of their choosing.
Q. You had said that in general you filled out most of the forms for the people who designated you to pick up the ballots. Did you fill out the forms for anybody who designated other people to pick up their ballots?
A. Yes, sir.
Q. And you filled them out before those other people signed them?
A. Yes.
Tempus omnia revelat - Time reveals all things ......
I like to see the difference between good and evil as kind of like the foul line at a baseball game. It's very thin, it's made of something very flimsy like lime, and if you cross it, it really starts to blur where fair becomes foul and foul becomes fair - Harlan Coben
This blog is authored by Michael N. Hull, a retired senior citizen who writes opinion pieces on local political issues. He is a Director of Clarkstown Residents Opposing Patronage with Tom Nimick and Ralph Sabatini. Hull contributes periodically to the Facebook page Clarkstown: What They Don't Want You To Know and on Twitter.
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