judicial elections

State Supreme Court -- Brooklyn: Nine people are vying for eight seats on the Supreme Court in the 2nd Judicial District -- and if it hadn't been for some Byzantine political machinations there wouldn't have been any election at all.

The ninth candidate, Paul Atanasio, got on the ballot only after a maneuver to get him off the ballot in another race on Staten Island, where he was running for Congress as the Conservative Party candidate. Some Republican and Conservative party members wanted Atanasio off the ballot so Vito Fossella, who decided not to seek re-election, could make another bid for the seat after all. The only way they could accomplish that, according to Elizabeth Benjamin, was to nominate him for a judgeship.

This may not have been a brilliant move. Fossella declined to take the bait, and Atanasio now bears the dubious distinction of having the New York City Bar Association rate him "not approved" for office. The association, which provides no detail on its determinations and rates candidates only as "approved" and "not approved," also gave a "not approved" rating to Richard Velazquez -- another candidate for the judicial spot.

The candidates and their parties are: Ariel Belen, D, R, C; Gloria Dabiri, D, R, C; John Leventhal, D, R, C; Plummer Lott, D, R, C; Richard Velazquez, D; Paul Atanasio, C; Paul Wooten, D; Ellen Spodek, D, R; Marsha Steinhardt, D, R, C.

Civil Court -- Brooklyn: Six candidates are vying for three seats on this court. They are: Alice Fisher Rubin, D; Vincent Martusciello, R, C; Loren Schiffman, D; Theodore Alatsas, R, C; Ingrid Joseph, D; Phillip Smallman, R, C.

All were rated approved by the New York City Bar Association excepted for Alatsas and Martusciello who were given ratings of "not approved."