The Court NY Deserves

Judges matter — just last week, we saw the huge impact of the Wisconsin Supreme Court election and the decision by a TX federal judge that could ban mifepristone. Yet voters are often in the dark about the process by which judges get selected to be on the ballot, and when it comes time to vote, we have little information about the candidates.

Here in New York, the selection of state court judicial candidates is an opaque process that takes place through the political parties or legislature and is rarely covered by the media. But the stakes are rising, as the US Supreme Court is poised to issue more disastrous decisions this term — we must make sure the New York judiciary stands up for our rights!

When we speak up, we can make a difference. The recent battle over the NY Court of Appeals chief judge is a case in point, and yesterday we got great news: Governor Hochul announced her new nominee — a progressive judge currently on the CoA who will be the first African-American Chief Judge — and his nomination is being widely celebrated! (Read this statement from The Court NY Deserves coalition and this article from the NYT.)  

Today we need to take action on the nomination of a NY Supreme Court judge. In NY, Supreme Court judges are trial court judges elected on party lines after nomination by judicial delegates at a convention. This year there are 20 candidates seeking the nomination, and Justice Charles Wood is a sitting Supreme Court judge seeking the Democratic Party’s endorsement for re-election. Elected as a Republican in 2009, he became a Democrat in 2019. 

Yet Wood’s decisions have been questionable during his 14-year tenure, notably his notorious and controversial decision that denied the First Amendment rights of The New York Times in favor of Project Veritas, a far-right organization based in Mamaroneck. Project Veritas is best known for “sting” hidden camera operations against Planned Parenthood, Acorn, Teacher Unions, and more. Read this explainer about Project Veritas HERE along with the article about Wood censoring The New York Times on behalf of Project Veritas seeking a new term as a Democrat here.

WCLA PAC has also labeled Wood as “unqualified” for its endorsement because of his interpretation and application of the Law with regard to victim privacy in Wood’s decision in GCVAWCG-Doe v. Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York. 

ACTION:  If you are a registered Democrat, contact your local and county Democratic Party Committee chairs TODAY to express your concern about Justice Wood’s candidacy, and ask that other qualified Democratic candidates be given full consideration. If you know who your party district leader is, contact them too, or ask your local chair to provide you with their name and contact info. See contact info at the links below:  

• Westchester County Chair 
• All Westchester County and Local Chairs

Thanks to Westchester for Change and LMI for providing this action.

RNC Trump-Lawler Fundraiser 

This Trump-centric gathering in Nashville is a MAGA money maker and Rep. Lawler’s attendance shows his loyalty to the hateful, far-right factions of the Republican Party.  

Action: Sign the petition asking Lawler to reject Trump’s anti-democratic agenda and refuse to attend the Donor Retreat.

Statewide Meeting with Lt. Gov. Delgado

Indivisibles are having a virtual meeting with Lt. Governor Delgado on Monday, April 24th from 6-7 pm. 

Action: Click here to register for the call.

Stop the MAGA Default

MAGA extremists are refusing to pay their debts unless they are allowed to force their cruel policy agenda through Congress. They think they can get away with this reckless plot because the legislative mechanism they’re using is called “the debt ceiling,” which they’re hoping nobody takes the time to understand. But refusing to raise the debt ceiling would trigger an immediate recession in the economy – which is why Congress has typically just voted to avert this catastrophe. That’s why we’re calling it The MAGA Default Crisis.

We’re gearing up for this big fight in May because we want to avert the MAGA Default Crisis before it can wreak havoc. Congress needs to vote to avoid defaulting before the deadline this summer, so we need to kick them into gear now.

Action: Click here to register for the call.

Planned Parenthood Hudson Peconic Votes invites you to join us for Cocktails, Conversations & Champions on Thursday, May @ 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. Sam’s of Gedney Way, White Plains

Action: Click here to register today.