If you’ve been following the shady dealings of Councilwoman Maria del Carmen Arroyo and the equally shady Arroyo clan, you already know that thousands of signatures were reported to the BOE as forgeries a couple of weeks ago.
Now the Board of Elections has tossed out over 1,800 of the bogus petition signatures leaving the “…ethically challenged…” as the Daily News likes to refer to her as, del Carmen Arroyo at the mercy of the judge when he rules on charges of fraud brought about the Julio Pabon campaign as well as dozens of local residents who’s signatures were forged.
Looks like even Papa Slime Schlein couldn’t even save her from such blatant forgeries.
Read what Denis Slatery of the Daily News has to say:
Board of Elections tosses 1,800 signatures collected by Maria Del Carmen Arroyo
Maria del Carmen Arroyo will need to recreate this pose later this week when a Bronx judge rules on whether she committed election fraud to get on the ballot.
Candidate had collected 3,800 signatures to get on the ballot. Bronx judge could toss hundreds more, kicking her off.
BY DENIS SLATTERY / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
The road to re-election just got extremely bumpy for a beleaguered Bronx City Councilwoman.
The Board of Elections has nullified more than 1,800 of the 3,863 signatures collected by Maria del Carmen Arroyo and her team in Arroyo’s bid to maintain her South Bronx seat.
And now, with almost half of her petition signatures ruled invalid, the ethically challenged Arroyo will face a Bronx judge who could strike a majority of the remaining scripts.
RELATED: COUNCILWOMAN’S ELECTION ‘FRAUD’
Arroyo must maintain at least 450 signed petitions to remain on the ballot for the Sept. 10 primary.
There is little chance of that happening if the judge rules that the remaining signatures — which include likely fabrications such as Derek Jeter, supermodel Kate Moss and other celebs — are tossed.
“We are pleasantly surprised by the number of signatures that the Board struck down,” said Julio Pabon, Arroyo’s elated opponent in the race.
RELATED: CHALLENGER MAKES FULL-COURT PRESS VS. ARROYO
Pabon offered one explanation for why Arroyo would have filed thousands of allegedly fake signatures: “I don’t think she expected anyone to challenge.”
But volunteers working for Pabon did just that, poring over the signatures and finding more than 3,400 that appeared to be fakes.
The signatures invalidated by the Board of Elections were limited to signatures belonging to non-registered Democrats or non-residents of the district, which includes Hunts Point, Morrisania and parts of Highbridge.
RELATED: ARROYO: PROOF IS IN THE PICTURE ON CASINO JACKPOT
Pabon’s campaign has a subsequent suit in Bronx Civil Court claiming that Arroyo knowingly violated election laws by submitting the fraudulent petitions. That court will offer a ruling Wednesday.
“If Ms. Arroyo is complicit with the actions of her petitioners, then all of these fraudulent names will be invalidated,” said Donald Dunn, the attorney who filed the suit.
Arroyo did not return requests for comment.
