Queens GOP nominates candidates to Supreme Court race
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The Queens GOP approved John Spataro, Joseph Krasper and Daniel Kogan and cross-endorsed Judges David Kirschner, Kenneth Holder and Denis Butler for Queens Supreme Court on Wednesday. Eagle photo by Jacob Kaye
By Jacob Kaye
The Queens County Republican Party’s judicial convention nominated six candidates to its party’s line for the November race for Queens Supreme Court Wednesday.
Led by Chairperson and City Council Candidate Joann Ariola, the Queens GOP nominated attorneys John Spataro, Joseph Kasper and Daniel Kogan, and cross-endorsed three judges nominated by the Queens Democratic Party last week, including Judge David Kirschner and current Supreme Court Justices Kenneth Holder and Denis Butler, who are both seeking a second 14-year term.
There are currently six vacancies in Queens Supreme Court.
“[Spataro, Kasper and Kogan are] really moderate in their ideology and I think their message translates beyond party because judges are supposed to be non-partisan, fair and impartial,” Ariola said. “The judges we crossed-endorsed are conservative jurists who have years on the bench and who we felt would be fair and impartial and were incredibly qualified.”
If Spataro, Kasper and Kogan sound familiar, it’s because all three were already on the 2021 ballot and running for various elected offices across Queens.
After receiving and accepting the nominations Wednesday, the candidates have since begun the process of withdrawing their names from the other races, according to Ariola.
Though not common, the practice of shuffling candidates around come judicial convention season isn’t unusual or improper, according to election attorney Jerry Goldfeder.
“Once they’re nominated, they can decline from the other position and they have a few days to do that,” Goldfeder said. “I wouldn't say it's common, but it's not infrequent.”
Both Kasper and Kogan were running in New York City Civil Court races – Kasper in the 3rd Municipal Court District and Kogan in the 4th Municipal Court District. Following the switch, Cassandra Johnson, who won the Democratic primary in the 4th District, will now run unopposed. Paul Vallone, who ran unopposed in the June Democratic primary in the 3rd District, will also now run unopposed in the general.
Spataro was running as the Republican challenger to conservative Democratic City Councilmember Robert Holden in the general election for District 30 this year.
In the lead up to the primary, some speculated Spataro was serving as a placeholder candidate – should Holden have lost his primary to progressive challenger Juan Ardila, Spatoro could have stepped aside and given Holden his Republican Party line.
The practice of placeholders was used when Holden first ran for City Council in 2017. Running in the Democratic primary, Holden lost to former City Councilmember Elizabeth Crowley. He then was given the Republican Party’s line for the general election and beat out Crowley for the seat.
Ariola, who has denied Spataro was a placeholder in the past, maintained that it was Spataro’s decision to run in both the City Council and Supreme Court races.
“He was not a placeholder,” Ariola said. “We really thought he was going to run and then he decided to go up to the Supreme Court slot.”
Goldfeder said the practice of swapping out candidates is common among both parties.
“Democrats do it also,” he said. “Everybody does it.”
Ariola and her party haven’t decided who will fill the vacancies created by the Supreme Court nominations – no one has come forward to tell them they’re interested in running yet.
However, the party hopes to fill the vacancy in District 30 and pit Holden against a Republican challenger, according to Ariola.
“We have people who might be interested, no one has reached out yet,” Ariola said. “Bob Holden has won his primary and...that's our intention, to find someone that fills the vacancy.”
Spataro previously ran for a Supreme Court spot in 2020 and 2019. He was approved by the New York City Bar Association both years.
Kasper also ran for Queens Supreme Court last year and the year prior. He was given a rating of “not approved” by the NYCBA both years.
Kogan was the sole Republican candidate in the primary for Queens District Attorney in 2019. He withdrew his name from the race, allowing Joe Murray to run on the party’s line in the general election against Melinda Katz, who would go on to win the race by a little less than 100,000 votes.
The attorney also ran for a Queens Supreme Court slot in 2019. He was given a rating of “not approved” by the NYCBA that year.
Ariola said that she hopes that one day, the Democrats will cross-endorse Republican candidates, as the Republicans have done for Democratic candidates in recent years, including this year. However, they need to first get candidates elected, she said.
“I think it’s easier for our candidates to receive cross-endorsements from the bench, so it’s our mission to get more elected,” she said. “I believe that moving forward, they would be considered for cross-endorsements because they would have already proven themselves.”
Kirschner, who isn’t proven as a Supreme Court justice but has spent nearly half a decade in the New York City Civil Court and Criminal Court and three decades in the legal field, said that he appreciated the cross-endorsement because it underscores that judges should be qualified, not partisan.
“It comes down to – is a judge qualified, temperate, reasonable, rational, analytical?” Kirschner said. “I think that’s the purpose of this process that we're going through.”
“I’m excited and energized to continue serving people within my county in exactly the same way that I have been doing,” he added. “I very much welcome the opportunity to do that.”
The Democratic Party, which held its convention on Aug. 5, nominated Judges Karen Gopee, Michele Titus, Laurentina McKetney Butler, Kirschner, Holder and Butler.
Correction: An earlier version of this story said Paul Vallone would face off against Kathy Wu Parrino in the general election for Civil Court judge. This is incorrect. Parrino was struck from the ballot on June 15, 2021. Vallone will run unopposed.
