NEED TO KNOW
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Maria Delgado, 83, was “flabbergasted” to learn she was listed as a candidate for her town’s local election
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She was named as the Working Families Party candidate for Huntington, N.Y., supervisor
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The Long Island woman earned nearly 1,200 votes during the Tuesday, Nov. 4, election without campaigning, potentially impacting the final outcome
An 83-year-old Long Island woman appeared on the Working Families Party ballot line for her town’s supervisor.
But Maria Delgado wasn’t even aware she was running.
The New Yorker, who lost against the incumbent, Republican Edmund Smyth, told reporters she was “flabbergasted” to learn she was even a candidate. “I had no idea,” she said, according to Newsday.
Her daughter Linda, who translated for her mother because she does not speak English fluently, said Delgado’s initial reaction was to ask, “’Is that a joke, or something?’ ” Linda added that the entire situation was “unbelievable.”
Linda also said that her mother has claimed to be a longtime Republican. But she was listed as a candidate for a party that is typically more left-leaning than traditional Democrats.
Delgado last voted in 2016 as a registered Democrat and was later re-registered with the Working Families Party, the New York Post reported.
Although Delgado didn’t win, she did earn nearly 1,200 votes, according to the Suffolk County Board of Elections. Smyth narrowly won, with 21,368 votes, defeating Democrat Cooper Macco, who received 20,766 votes.
Now, the Democrats are blaming dirty politics. Suffolk Democratic Party Chairman Rich Schaffer said Delgado was a “shill” candidate, telling Newsday, “I’m sure she probably doesn’t even realize she’s a candidate.”
Schaffer claimed that the Republicans and Conservatives “meant to siphon votes from the Democratic candidate,” telling Newsday, “It’s gone on over several cycles in Huntington.”
The Democratic Party accused Republican and Conservative operatives of facilitating a party raid, meaning they confused voters by coordinating an infiltration of the Working Families Party line.
However, Suffolk County Republican Party Chairman Jesse Garcia rejected the Democrats’ claims, calling the accusation “an outright lie” in a statement. He added, “Delgado’s candidacy was never objected to by Suffolk or Huntington Democrats and was verified multiple times.”
Shoshana Hershkowitz, co-chair of the Suffolk County Working Families Party, did not know Delgado, telling HuntingtonNow, “A group of corrupt individuals petitioned themselves onto the ballot, forced a primary and unfortunately won the primary.”
Hershkowitz said the Working Families Party previously endorsed Macco.
Schaffer claimed that the Republicans and Conservatives “meant to siphon votes from the Democratic candidate,” telling Newsday, “It’s gone on over several cycles in Huntington.”
Read the original article on People
