Democrats are trying to reverse a decision made by a federal judge this week ordering election officials in New York to hold its Democratic primary election in June despite the coronavirus pandemic.
Democratic members of the state’s Board of Elections filed an appeal Wednesday regarding the reinstatement of the New York presidential primary.
The Associated Press reports the appeal, made by board Commissioner Andrew Spano, comes only a day after U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres in Manhattan concluded canceling the election would be unconstitutional.
Torres also said canceling wouldn’t give fair representation to withdrawn presidential candidates Andrew Yang and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders at the Democratic National Convention.
Respective lawyers for Yang and Sanders argued their clients would be harmed by the decision.
The Board of Elections’ Democratic members voted last week to cancel the presidential primary due to concerns over the spread of the COVID-19 virus. The state, however, would still hold its congressional and state-level primaries on June 23.
Torres argued there was enough time before the election to figure out protocols for voter safety. She noted no other state had canceled its primary because of the pandemic.
