(New York’s Congressional District 17 represents parts of Rockland, Westchester, and Bronx Counties)

Great result for tea party favorite, Congressional candidate, Anthony Melé, who won the Republican primary on September 14, but b-i-z-a-r-r-e process that took 14 days to announce the winner.  So bizarre that as of Thursday, September 30 at 11:00 PM, fully 16 days after the polls closed, NY1 continues to erroneously show York Kleinhandler, the loser in the race, in the lead by 153 votes!

It cost New York State $70 million to install a new system of paper ballots in order to make things easier, not more difficult to count the vote.  In fact, counting the 7,000 votes cast in District 17 is so easy a fifth grader can do it; my 17 year old son Joe can count 7,000 ballots in 15 minutes flat; or simple enough my extremely bright German Sheppard “Reiko” can count 7,000 ballots by sorting them with her nose.

What transpired here is not really about “counting” votes, we already know who won – Anthony Melé  – fair and square on primary day, the issue is whether a disappointed Republican and Conservative Party leadership, unethically caused county-election officials to stall the result for 14 days with the intent of changing things in their favor (a plan that never materialized).

If it not for Anthony Melé  who never gave up on the people’s vote and his lively supporters, the “hurricanes”, who never gave up on Anthony Melé, corrupt party bosses may have succeeded in pulling the wool over everyone’s eyes.  Suppressing the people’s vote is a Federal crime and more in line with “elections” in countries such as Chaves’ Venezuela and Castro’s Cuba.

An unfair District convention

Vincent Reda, Chair of the Republican Party in Rockland County, and State Vice Chair, orchestrated a phony Rockland County convention that was never intended to be fair.   Reda gave Anthony Melé delegates in Rockland County the wrong date for the convention on purpose so that a designation “win” for Kleinhandler would be inevitable.

In Westchester County, Republican Party Chair, Doug Colety, does not want to play fair either.  Three times Anthony Melé won the vote count at the Westchester County convention, but the nomination was given to Kleinhander, when the fourth and final vote count put him over the top with two delegates switching at the last minute.

In the Bronx, the Melé  For Congress campaign was not given access to the delegate count and was unable to verify votes, rendering such count unverifiable and meaningless.

All of these obstacles did not stop Anthony Melé  from collecting petitions from Republican voters to gain access to the Republican ballot.  When that was completed, Vincent Reda, et al. took Melé  to Court to push him off the Republican ballot still.  The Court rejected their pleas and ruled in favor of Anthony Melé (RaquelOkyay.com Aug. 9) :

“With the pound of the gavel, victory became attainable for outspoken patriot and Republican stalwart, Anthony “Tony” Melé, candidate for U.S. Congress – NY District 17.  At stake at the State Capitol Courthouse today was a contentious battle for petitions, ballot access, truths and untruths, and where Judge Colabella ruled, “Melé Stays on the Ballot!”

Unfortunately the primary race in District 17 was not a competition between two Republicans who stepped up to the plate to beat long time incumbent and liberal Democrat Rep. Eliot Engel, but really a campaign of smears, rumor and lies to push Anthony Melé  out of the primary race.  Since Anthony Melé  would not participate in party payoffs and promises of patronage jobs in exchange for Republican Party support, he would be rejected by Party leaders fearful of losing power and control.  It is the people who believed in Anthony Melé, and it is the people who provided victory.

Dispelling lies and rumors

Opponents of Anthony Melé created a dummy-website to accuse Tony of doctoring his Army service award and record.  None of it is true, as Tony’s accomplishments and record of service to America is crystal clear, and can be viewed at www.Melé ForCongress.com.

Opponents of Anthony Melé accuse him of being a racist for advocating statehood for Puerto Rico, and when Tony explains that, unbeknownst to many in the audience, Puerto Ricans are American citizens too, one Republican was aghast (and they want to call Tony a racist?).

Opponents of Anthony Melé  accuse him of “tampering” with ballots at a polling booth in Westchester on primary day.  Yet according to news reports the Yonkers Police Department and the District Attorney concluded there was no wrong doing or “tampering” of ballots.  Polling Officials, who themselves did not know which district they were in, provided emergency “write-in” ballots as a contingency so that Republicans who may be in Ward 3 – CD 17, who wished to vote, would not be disenfranchised.  It is that simple, no hoopla, no yelling, and no compromise in ethics.

Calling on York Kleinhandler to drop from the race

Even Kleinhandler admits that “it has been observed that if I stay in the race it will split the vote and guarantee a win for the Democrat incumbent,” yet stubbornly says he will remain in the race on the Conservative Party line (the only ballot left for him) rather than support the candidate Republican primary voters elected, Anthony Melé .

In District 17, there are only 3,801 registered Conservatives, compare that with the 49,629 registered Republicans, you will see that Republican voters outnumber Conservatives by a 13 to 1 margin.  By staying in this race, Kleinhandler disenfranchises tens of thousands of Republican voters, in an election cycle where Republicans have a chance to win.  TheHill.com reports on Sept. 28 that:

“…the Democratic Party is facing the biggest defeat in midterm elections in the past 110 years, perhaps surpassing the modern record of a 74-seat gain set in 1922.”

The time is now for York Kleinhandler to do the right thing for the Republican voters by choosing to support Anthony Melé  for US Congress.  Together we can pursue a formidable challenge to the Democrat controlled Congress that is bankrupting our Nation, and steadfastly moving away from — instead of embracing – the principles set forth in the US Constitution.  York Kleinhandler is completely aware as much as everyone else just what a spoiler is.  He can throw his support behind Melé or tell Republican voters that their choice on primary day means nothing, and that Eliot Engel ought to win. (No one likes a spoiler, Mr. Kleinhandler!)