Endicott Mayor Ready to Form New Political Party

An effort to create a new political party is moving forward in the village of Endicott.

Mayor Linda Jackson said she and her supporters are working to establish a party called the "Endicotters."

The action is a response to the news that Jackson may not have enough valid signatures to qualify for a spot on the June 27 Republican primary ballot.

WIVT Newschannel 34/binghamtonhomepage.com reported that a registered Republican in Endicott had filed a challenge to Jackson's election petitions.

The challenge claims a person who signed a petition for Jackson had previously signed a petition for Republican trustee Nick Burlingame. That's not permitted under state election law.

Jackson acknowledged a friend who had been circulating petitions for her had made a mistake and allowed someone who had signed a Burlingame petition to sign one of hers.

The Broome County Board of Elections will be reviewing petitions and ultimately determine whether Jackson will qualify for the Republican primary.

Jackson said she's already receiving support for setting up another party to ensure that her name will be on the ballot for the November general election.

The mayor said "I think it's going to be exciting for all of us Republicans who want a new way of doing things." She said "we don't want to go back to the old ways of just being controlled" by certain elements of the local Republican party.

Nick Burlingame said he had been looking forward to facing Jackson in a Republican primary. He said he'll respect the ruling of the Board of Elections on the petition issue.

Of Jackson's plan to create another party, Burlingame said "I suspect she won't give up easy." But, he added, he believed it "would be difficult to win as a third-party candidate."

Broome County Republican deputy election commissioner Joseph Bertoni said he expects a public meeting will be scheduled for sometime next week by the Board of Elections to review petition-related issues.

Larry Coppola has announced he's running as a Democrat for Endicott mayor.

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Contact WNBF News reporter Bob Joseph: bob@wnbf.com or (607) 545-2250. For breaking news and updates on developing stories, follow @BinghamtonNow on Twitter.

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Endicott Mayor Ready to Form New Political Party

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