Dear Governor Cuomo and Chairman Paterson,



We, the undersigned, are concerned with the current state of our

Democracy. We believe that Democracy is not a spectator sport and

requires an active citizenry. We believe that Democracy is best when

the people are most involved. We believe that selecting candidates to

represent us is one of the core functions of the people. Thus, we stand

in solidarity with Governor Cuomo's call to repeal the Wilson Pakula law. The

Wilson Pakula law, which requires a candidate from one party obtain

permission from party bosses to run as a candidate from another party, is

antiquated and not Democratic. We believe a candidate should be able to

gain permission to run with a particular party by obtaining signatures

from the actual party members. This would foster dialogue between

hopeful candidates and the people. The Wilson Pakula process enables

corruption, as witnessed recently when a New York State Senator was

arrested for trying to bribe party leaders into granting him the Wilson

Pakula. We recognize that the legislative process is cumbersome and

that repealing the Wilson Pakula is no easy task. However, we also

understand that you are the leaders of the Democratic Party in New York.

Thus, we urge you to grant Bernie Sanders the Wilson Pakula so that he

can continue his dialogue with the people of New York and obtain a place

on the primary ballot. New York should not be in a position to block a

robust discourse amongst the Democratic Party membership across the

entire nation. Granting Mr. Sanders the Wilson Pakula would be a

service to the entire nation