Should Brian Benjamin Remain On Primary Ballot For Lt. Gov.? [POLL]

NEW YORK — New York Lt. Gov. Brian Benjamin resigned Tuesday after being accused of funneling state money to a Harlem real estate investor in return for illegal campaign contributions.

The 45-year-old Harlem resident was charged with federal program bribery, honest services wire fraud, conspiracy to commit those offenses and two counts of falsification of records.

Maximum sentences for the charges range from five years to 20 years in prison, prosecutors said.

On the same day he appeared in court, Benjamin tendered his resignation to Gov. Kathy Hochul, who accepted it and said it was clear he could not continue to serve as lieutenant governor.

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"New Yorkers deserve absolute confidence in their government," Hochul said, "and I will continue working every day to deliver for them."

Benjamin will be staying on the June 28 primary ballot, The City reported election experts as saying.

He was nominated by the Democratic Party and he accepted the nomination back in February. The deadline for turning it down has long since passed.

A state board of elections official said one way he could be disqualified from running would be if he established residency in another state. Prosecutors in his case agreed to allow Benjamin to travel to Virginia or Georgia while waiting for trial.

The only other ways a candidate can be removed from a ballot would be in the case of death or running for another office.

Benjamin said he has suspended his campaign while fighting the charges, Spectrum Local News reported.

However, that's not good enough for Assemblywoman Amy Paulin, D-Scarsdale, who said she will be introducing legislation to allow a candidate for office the opportunity to decline their party's nomination and be removed from the ballot if charged with a crime.

Her bill would give candidates until May 1 for a primary and Sept. 1 for a general election to remove themselves from the ballot for "special circumstances," such as the aforementioned criminal charge, as well as having a life-threatening illness or resigning from the office for which they were nominated, WAMC reported.

May 1 would be a tight deadline for Paulin's bill to be passed and signed into law, though.

New York's early voting period for the 2022 primaries begins June 18 and runs through June 26.

Now it's your turn to weigh in on the subject. Vote in our unscientific poll and tell us what you think in the comments.