Sultana earns spot on primary ballot in 136th District state House Democratic primary
No court challenge filed over her nomination petition issues
Despite allegations of “irregularities” with her nomination petition signatures, Taiba Sultana will appear on the Democratic primary ballot for the 136th state House district seat against longtime incumbent Robert Freeman.
The ballot positions for that and other state contests for the April 23 primary were determined by a lottery Wednesday in Harrisburg. Sultana was chosen for the top spot on the 136th ballot with Freeman in the second spot.
Freeman said his campaign volunteers found “irregularities” on nearly half of Sultana’s 656 signatures on her nominating petitions filed last week. However, no one filed objections to Sultana’s petitions in Commonwealth Court by Tuesday’s deadline, ensuring her a place on the ballot.
Scrutinizing candidate nomination petitions part of the political game
Sultana, an Easton City Council member, said she feels good about the upcoming race despite the scrutiny her campaign has received already. “Nobody said this campaign would be easy and we know we're fighting against the establishment,” she said Wednesday.
Freeman also has confidence in his campaign, noting he has always displayed integrity, acted appropriately and fostered a spirit of cooperation.
He emphasized that, with computerized voting machines, ballot order does not matter as much as it did in the past. Voters must review their selections before their votes are cast.
The most notable name on Sultana’s petitions belonged to Democratic state Sen. Lisa Boscola. Boscola said she does not live in the 136th District — only voters who live in a district can legally sign a candidate’s petition — and the address listed with the signature does not exist.
“It was an oversight to not have caught this trick but it is not a forgery on my part,” Sultana said earlier this week. “I am so proud of our petitions having been signed by residents of every background.”
In an interview earlier this week, Freeman said volunteers with his campaign had found 296 signatures that “appear to be questionable.”
Some of the names on the petition have lapsed voter registrations. Some names are not legible. In several instances, handwriting suggests one person in a household printed all the details except for the signature, which is not allowed, Freeman said. All signers must complete the entire line of the petition themselves. Also, several of the filed petitions are photocopies and not originals. “That is also not allowed,” he said.
“This is fraudulent, and a violation of the process and a violation of the integrity of the process,” Freeman said. “There are a host of irregularities that would be challengeable. It is highly unusual to find a petition where 296 of 656 signatures are questionable.”
With 656 signatures on her petitions, even if someone had challenged Sultana’s nomination and all 296 allegedly questionable signatures were rejected, she would have had more than the minimum 300 required to remain on the ballot.
Municipalities included in the 136th are Easton, Wilson, parts of Palmer Township, Williams Township, Glendon, West Easton, Freemansburg, Hellertown, and parts of Lower Saucon.
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