2:52 pm Jun. 28, 2012
El Diario's front page goes to the possible showdown between Assemblyman Guillermo Linares and Adriano Espaillat for Espaillat's State Senate seat in Upper Manhattan.
During his congressional campaign against Rep. Charlie Rangel, Espaillat said he had no plans to seek re-election to his State Senate seat. But petitions circulating to put Espaillat on the ballot as a State Senate candidate were nonetheless circulated. Espaillat said he did not authorize them.
The El Diario story smartly notes that the narrowing official count from the congressional race could actually delay whatever formal announcement Espaillat plans to make about the Senate race that he will presumably undertake once the Rangel business is settled.
The latest Espaillat could wait before entering the race, practically, is about a month, according to election expert Jerry Skurnik.
Petitions for the legislative races have to be filed with the Board of Elections by July 12. A candidate has until July 16 to decide whether to accept or decline the nomination based on those petitions.
But if another candidate who filed petitions decides not to proceed with his campaign for some reason, then that campaign's "committee to fill vacancies" has until July 20 to announce a replacement candidate.
If that happens, then the replacement candidate has to file paperwork formally accepting the nomination. That paperwork has to be filed with the Board of Elections by July 24.
