GOP candidate for Family Court booted from ballot. Here's why

Gary Craig, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
·2 min read
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The Republican Party candidate for Monroe County Family Court has been booted from the ballot after what a judge determined was an improper petitioning process.

State Supreme Court Justice Daniel Doyle ruled this week that GOP Chairman Patrick Reilly could not place his name on party petitions as a placeholder for the judgeship because Reilly is not a lawyer.

That petitioning misstep in turn invalidated the subsequent petitions of local lawyer and Wheatland Town Justice Nicole Bayly, who was chosen to fill the candidacy. The Democratic candidate is lawyer Ella Marshall.

In the ruling, Doyle wrote that:

  • Reilly put his name on the petition as a placeholder until the GOP and Conservative Party had decided upon a candidate. That candidate was ultimately Bayly.

  • However, Reilly under the law could not be a placeholder because a family court judicial candidate must be a lawyer, and Reilly is not.

  • Because Reilly's petitioned position was invalid, the subsequent placement of Bayly "as the Republican Party and Conservative Party (candidate) must be invalidated."

Ella Marshall
Ella Marshall

In a statement, Democratic Party Chairman Stephen DeVay said that he and Reilly, as party chairs, "have a duty to abide by election law and put forth the most qualified candidates to serve our community.

"With regards to this race, Pat failed at both," DeVay said.

Reilly said the Democratic lawsuit challenging the petitions has denied voters a choice.

The Board of Elections had accepted the petitions. In court papers, Reilly said he had been told by knowledgeable people that he could use his name as a placeholder.

"It is common practice by both parties to use placeholder names on petitions and for the Democrats to sue to overrule the Board of Elections Commissioners ruling and remove Judge Bayly from the ballot is a disservice to the people of Monroe County," Reilly said in a statement.

Bayly's campaign unsuccessfully challenged Marshall's candidacy, claiming that she was trying to mislead voters by using a name that she has not commonly used in the past. Marshall said she has used the name commonly after a divorce.

Doyle refused to remove Marshall from the ballot, saying there was no evidence "beyond mere supposition" that voters would be confused by the name.

This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: GOP candidate for Monroe County Family Court booted from ballot in New York