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from long-time Green Party member Roger Snyder:
The other night a Green Party member said that they received a call from the Green Party about who to vote for in the September 10th Primary. It would seem strange since there are no primaries with the Green Party members running the year, and I would be aware if the Green Party was calling people.
Of course this was yet more of the deceptive actions by judicial candidates attempting to pass themselves off as Greens and take the Green Party line in this fall’s election.
I checked my voice mail and had received a call from the same candidate’s campaign, Judge Martha Luft. This is a transcript (as close as I could get it) of the phone message:
“Hi this is Ben Luft. I’m calling Roger Snyder. I’m calling on behalf of Judge Martha Luft who is running the primary in the Green Party this Thursday September 10. Martha is being challenged by a Republican and and Conservative neither of who has any judicial experience. On the other hand Martha has served with distinction for the past 10 years as family court judge and she’s been rated as highly qualified by the Independent judicial qualifications commission. She’s a graduate of Stanford law and her reputation as a jurist is impeccable. I want to strongly encourage you to go out and vote for the green party primary and don’t allow the Conservatives and Republicans to hijack the line. Thank you.”
Ben Luft never mentions that Judge Luft is not a member of the Green Party, that she is in fact a Democrat, but does say things like “Judge Martha Luft who is running the primary in the Green Party…,” and “Martha is being challenged by a Republican and a Conservative…” which implies she is a Green Party member being challenged by candidates from other parties. She is not a Green being challenged for the Green Party line, it is the Green Party that is being challenged by her and the other parties’ candidates.
Even more damning is the closing phrase ” …don’t allow the Conservatives and Republicans to hijack the line,” hiding the fact the she is a Democrat, not a Green, and is trying to hijack the Green line herself.
Her campaign also had a letter mailed out, which is similarly deceptive. While it does say at the beginning that she is a (big D) Democrat, it later says “With no other Green candidate…” which clearly implies she is a Green, (big G) candidate. Most offensively it claims having another candidate win the primary would make a “mockery” of the Green Party. What is really the case is that having candidates from other parties steal the Green Party line is an attempt to make a mockery of the Green Party and its principles.
Judge Luft is not alone in trying to take the Green Party line for her own use, see the links below, and I just picked up a voice message from Harkin and Hughes (again below). The message did not as strongly imply these candidates were Greens, or candidates of the Green Party as they did in petitioning, but also did not disclose they do not belong to the Green Party and were trying to take the line for their use in the election.
Personally it is hard for me to understand how candidates who campaign so deceptively could be qualified to serve as a judge.
More information on this issue.
Filed under: 3rd party, Ballot issues, election, Green Party, Long Island Politics, News, suffolk county Tagged: | Anthony Senft, Family Court, George Harkin, judge, long island primaries, Martha Luft, Matthew Hughes, primary, William Ford
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