Ocasio-Cortez Blasts New York Canceling Primary: ‘This Is the Wrong Call’

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) is calling on the Democratic National Committee (DNC), which has been accused of rigging the Democrat Primary against Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), to respond to New York’s decision to cancel its Democrat primary, calling it the “wrong move.”

Members of the State’s Board of Elections opted to cancel the Democrat primary while holding the state-level primaries on June 23, as scheduled, citing coronavirus concerns. New York Democratic Party chair Jay Jacobs said it makes “so much sense given the extraordinary nature of the challenge” and said that it will result in a lower turnout.

Sanders’ Senior Adviser Jeff Weaver released a fiery statement on the decision, calling it a “blow to American democracy” and demanding the DNC to overturn the decision. Ocasio-Cortez, who supported Sanders and stumped for him on the campaign trail, followed suit.

“No matter who you support, it is extremely dangerous that New York is establishing a precedent of cancelling elections citing COVID,” she said. “Ballots were certified & neither candidate asked for this. The decision should be overturned immediately.”

“Primary results matters beyond who wins 1st place. Sen. Sanders explicitly stated that he intended on continuing to collect delegates in order to advance wage, healthcare, climate & other priorities into the platform at the convention,” she continued, contending that the DNC should “respond to this decision.”

“As I have said: unity isn’t a feeling, it’s a process. Undemocratic, unilateral decisions that disenfranchise millions of progressive voters & volunteers is extremely destructive to the process of unifying the party for Nov. Dems must take this seriously,” she added. “This is the wrong call”:

While Sanders did, in fact, suspend his campaign, effectively making Joe Biden (D) the party’s presumptive nominee, Weaver said it was “not ended, because people in every state should have the right to express their preference.”

“What the Board of Elections is ignoring is that the primary process not only leads to a nominee but also the selection of delegates which helps determine the platform and rules of the Democratic Party,” he added, calling for the state to lose its delegates to the 2020 Democratic National Convention if it proceeds.

Weaver also said there should be “a broader review by the Democratic Party of New York’s checkered pattern of voter disenfranchisement.”