Mistake in Name of Party Did Not Warrant Striking Candidate’s Name from Ballot

The Second Department reversed Supreme Court’s striking of a candidate’s name from the ballot.  Supreme Court determined the identification of the party as the “Working Family Party” rather than the “Working Families Party” was fatal because the “Working Family Party” is not a registered or recognized political party. The Second Department wrote:

Although it is undisputed that the designating petition contained an error in the naming of the political party …, a petition should not be invalidated where “there is no proof of any intention on the part of the candidate or of those who have solicited signatures on his [or her] behalf to mislead or confuse, and no evidence that the inaccuracy did or would lead or tend to lead to misidentification or confusion on the part of those invited to sign the petition” … . Here, there has been no showing of any intention to mislead or confuse, and no showing that the inaccuracy in the designating petition did or would lead or tend to lead to misidentification or confusion on the part of those invited to sign the petition. Inasmuch as no such showing was made, the designating petition was improperly invalidated… . Matter of  Cohn v Suffolk County Bd of Elections, 2013 NY Slip Op 05625, 2nd Dept 8-14-13