The topic of zoning in the Town of Caroline has been a hot button issue for months and anti-zoning advocates have have recently come under fire after a video taken on February 11 surfaced on Facebook showing former Republican town council member Peter Hoyt advocating for anti-zoning Republicans to switch their party affiliation to Democrat to trigger a Democratic primary in an attempt to get pro-zoning Democrats off the town council.
The Tompkins County Democratic Committee (TCDC) has noticed a slate of anti-zoning candidates running as Democrats and an unusual hike in the number of newly-registered Democrats in that town. As a result, the chair of the County Democratic Committee has called for an investigation into a party-switching campaign in the Town of Caroline.
To make matters even more suspicious, there are no Republican candidates for Town of Caroline offices this year.
In the video Hoyt outlines a plan to trigger a June primary against pro-zoning candidates endorsed by the town Democratic committee.
Hoyt introduces the plan by saying, “I think you're all aware that we've got a little DINO [Democrat In Name Only] thing. Many of us have jumped in already, myself included. The purpose of that is so we can vote in the Democratic primary.” Hoyt proceeds to direct attendees to a table to fill out change-of-registration cards, saying he’ll deliver them to the Board of Elections himself.
Following his request he says that those who choose to switch their party affiliation “can always change back later,” and that come November they can vote for whoever they want regardless of party affiliation.
Hoyt then explains that as newly registered Democrats, attendees can sign designating petitions for a slate of three anti-zoning candidates who will run as Democrats, thereby initiating a primary.
“I was hoping that we could start getting folks to sign [petitions] tonight, because we got a good crowd here,” Hoyt adds, but “under New York State election law, you can't even start signing until the 28th of February. And I've looked into it, it's not worth trying to fudge it.” He asks attendees to provide their names and addresses on a sign-up sheet, “So we can come to your house and get the signatures for the three candidates.”
Since these comments were made, a total of 74 non-Democratic Caroline voters enrolled as Democrats during the re-registration period, from January 15 through February 14. Tompkins County Democratic Committee Chair Linda Hoffmann has said that this is “an exceptionally large change of party affiliation rarely seen in the past.”
A total of 140 Caroline Democrats, including 53 newly-enrolled members, signed petitions for the anti-zoning candidates. A Caroline resident who submitted an anonymous news tip to the Ithaca Times said that the intent of the party switching campaign is to force through anti-zoning candidates “by manipulating the voter rolls to force a primary and bank on low turnout from actual Democrats.”
The source continued saying that they were told about the campaign by a lifelong Republican who said that they switched their party affiliation to Democrat earlier this year. “The gist I got from them was ‘look at me, I’m a Democrat now, wink wink nudge nudge,’” the source said.
Citing New York State Election Law § 17-102(4) and (5), Hoffmann says encouraging people to change parties in order to swing a primary is a violation of election law that can be prosecuted as a misdemeanor. She has asked the Tompkins County District Attorney and the chair of the Tompkins County Republican Committee to look into the matter.
“This is a grossly undemocratic tactic aimed at confusing voters,” Hoffmann says. “Our party and our candidates stand for a set of values and beliefs. We welcome anyone who shares those values and beliefs. But we are offended by those who present themselves as Democrats while adhering to the values and beliefs of another organization. We urge Town of Caroline Democrats to vote for the candidates who have been endorsed by the town Democratic committee in the upcoming primary.”
The Town of Caroline Democratic Committee has endorsed three incumbents: Mark Witmer for Town Supervisor and Kate Kelley-Mackenzie and Tim Murray for Town Council; citing their experience and hard work. All three support continued consideration of zoning for the town.
If a primary is held, early voting will begin June 19, with Primary Election Day on June 27.
(5) comments
I can't vouch for the political behavior of anyone in Caroline, but we ARE free to speak about our politics and political tactics. "Encouraging others to change parties in order to swing a primary ..." sounds like free speech to me, and I think that any law that prohibits it is against our rights. The reason I register as a Democrat is very practical, to have some say over who will run in the general election. My sympathies align better with the goals of the Greens. Will I now be purged from the Democratic Party?
This is nothing compared to the routine,secretive plotting that goes on among high government officials, their campaign managers, high party officials, and the corporate players who support them with open wallets. I guess that law was put there to help the two main parties divide the public against itself, which is the one thing they do well.
No one is forcing pro-zoning candidates onto the ballot - they are appealing for voter support and voters can give it or not. If all Republicans in Caroline signed up as Democrats, then the primary would be the equivalent of an open primary, which is how some states conduct all their primaries, that is, everyone together deciding who the top candidates are. Doesn't that sound democratic?
If the Caroline Democratic Party see that as otherwise, they can "encourage" independent pro-zoning candidates to collect petitions to make sure that there are pro-zoning candidates on the ballot if their Party-approved candidates lose in the primary.
It has long seemed to me that our style of partisan politics cancels democratic politics. Anything we can do to weaken the role of political parties in our system of government, in elections and the way legislatures operate, is likely to bolster democracy.
Timothy Lillard,
While "we ARE free to speak about our politics and political tactics. "Encouraging others to change parties in order to swing a primary ..." sounds like corruption to me, done in secret, counting on the lack of publicly available truth or worse, misinformation.
Since NY does not have legal open primary elections, any effort to subvert that law is against our rights AND responsibilities. Unfortunately, too many people are so concerned about their rights, they forget about their responsibilities, such as being ethical. The unethical Machiavellian "end justifies the means" is a greater poison to democracy than any law regarding ethical conduct in elections.
While your registration as a Democrat is very practical, to have some say over who will run in the general election, to propose an organized subversion of the process and proposing a slate of candidates opposed to the party platform is illegal. Your sympathies may align better with the goals of the Greens, however, you are not committing fraud to subvert a primary election. You have nothing to fear from the Democratic Party. That being said, primaries can be over-ridden by the party leaders as the primaries are the property and controlled by the named party, and not their members, as evidenced by the 2016 DNC Presidential primaries, I believe.
While secretive plotting goes on among high government officials, their campaign managers, high party officials, and the corporate players who support them with open wallets is currently legal, why the race to the ethical bottom? More false equivalencies and "whataboutism" are not needed.
No one is forcing pro-zoning candidates onto the ballot, true - they are using dirty tricks to secretly obscure their agenda. They are appealing for voter support based on lies and ethical lapses, and voters can not cast an honestly informed vote.
If all Republicans in Caroline signed up as Democrats, then the primary would be the equivalent of an open primary, which is illegal in NY. Some states conduct all their primaries as open primaries, and have laws on the books to support it. I agree that is a worthy goal, if done ethically and legally... that is, everyone together deciding who the top candidates are. The issue is getting there by methods that are not ethically challenged and/or illegal.
To encourage the Caroline Democratic Party to "encourage" their members to be unethical and possibly criminal is absurd. More corruption does not encourage honesty.
I agree anything ethical and legal we can do to weaken the role of political parties in our system of government, in elections and the way legislatures operate, is likely to bolster democracy. The ends however, never do justify the means.
"That being said, primaries can be over-ridden by the party leaders as the primaries are the property and controlled by the named party, and not their members, as evidenced by the 2016 DNC Presidential primaries, I believe."
Is this a recommendation that the Democratic leadership in Caroline ignore the results of the primary as the Democratic leadership did in 2016 when it ignored the presidential primary results and selected Hillary Clinton over Bernie Sanders? What would the be the point of a primary then?
Wouldn't it be better for them to reach out to Democrats who support the zoning laws and encourage them to vote? If their candidates lose during the primary, they still have the option of having them run as independents as Timothy Lillard suggested. Surely their voters are capable of looking past party affiliation if the issue is important to them.
It's crucial we don't allow the ends to justify the means.
While researching in preparation of this reply, I came across an interesting piece in The Atlantic, a publication not known for Conservative bias, titled "When Your Vote Doesn't matter, Try Switching Ballots". https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2022/05/primary-election-voting-party-switching/630171/
In its long history the Democratic party in the US has stood and stood up for many things, some good, others not so good. In the latter category, two stand out; support for racial segregation in the South, now repudiated; and the establishment and control of very effective city, county, and even statewide political machines in the urban North, still alive and well it seems. In most of these cases, the opposition party, usually the Republicans, was impotent and the only way to challenge the ruling party order was within the party itself, usually by means of primary elections. This is all well known.
An informative read on the party's history is found at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Democratic_Party_(United_States). Another is at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Party_switching_in_the_United_States.
Is Caroline a one-party town? In 2007, the last two Republicans were elected to the town board by narrow margins. I was one of those people and neither of us were re-elected in 2011. Ever optimistic, in 2019 I ran for supervisor, again as a Republican. We had a well rounded slate for the other offices, all of whom were far less "controversial" than I. We all lost by nearly identical vote counts, a 60-40 ratio. No one even ventured to run as a Republican in 2021.
What could we do this year to oust the entrenched incumbents who demonstrate no interest in the opinions of the many hundreds of Caroline voters who are opposed to zoning? The obvious and indeed the only practical answer was to take the fight to the Democrats. We already had several hundred Democratic signatures on our petition to postpone zoning so there was a start. Recruiting several dozen more voters could perhaps cause a primary upset. We did it all legally and by the book, despite claims to the contrary.
The previous Tompkins County Democratic chairwoman ruled with an iron fist inside a velvet glove. Our newly installed chairwoman seems to have misplaced the glove. And the usual barking from the sidelines, on both sides of the field, persists.
I fear no retribution from the District Attorney's office nor anywhere else; I have done nothing morally or legally wrong. Claims to the contrary are rooted in party strategy, wishful thinking, personal animosity, or some combination thereof.
And I Quote:
“This Tuesday, February the 14th, is the last day for changing parties. I think you’re all aware, we’ve got a little DINO movement here, Democrat in Name Only. Many of us have jumped in already, myself included, and the purpose of that is so we can vote in the Democratic Primary …. I think it’s very important to get as many people to switch parties…. It’s important to get a lot of people changed.…
“There are these little cards out by the table there where you walk in. If you haven’t already, please take (one), and if you’re not a Democrat, and you’re willing to change parties for the cause. You can always change back later. I think it would be very useful if you filled one of these out and left it with us here. I’ll be going down to the Board of Elections personally Tuesday afternoon with whatever we’ve got. So, I ask, you know, those of you who haven’t done it before, please consider doing it very seriously.
You can always change back later"
https://www.facebook.com/TCDemocrats/videos/260044706399256
In spite of your Machiavellian justification, your actions were definitely unethical and possibly a violation of election law. All your candidates needed to do was carry petitions, go to Democratically registered voters, and ask for their signature. It's a low threshold in terms of the number of signatures required so what you did, besides being exceedingly stupid, was avoidable.
And since you're so keen on party history, perhaps we should recall the greatest hits of Republicans over the past 5 years: Insurrection, election denial, suppression of gay rights, suppression of reproductive choice, shall I go on?
Here's the bottom line, Pete. You made your choice and now over 1,400 people, and counting, are aware of it. It taints your reputation and calls into question the ethics of the candidates who joined with you. And this will carry past the primary when they try to win on an independent line.
Your conclusion that, "Claims to the contrary are rooted in party strategy, wishful thinking, personal animosity, or some combination thereof," is simply a more eloquently stated claim of, "witch hunt."
This time there's an actual witch. Perhaps you should grab your pointy hat, get on your broom and fly on out of here. I hear that Florida is nice.
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