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