Bill de Blasio Thrown Off Ballot for Petition Error, Will Appeal

 There's a reason why political candidates take such care with their ballot petitions in New York; they are subject to notoriously arcane rules and can be easily challenged and denied. Councilmember Bill de Blasio, a strong contender for the office of Public Advocate, had his ballot application for the Democratic primary thrown out because his 125,000+ petition signatures came in 132 volumes, but the campaign had written on the cover sheet that there were 131 volumes, and on this ground the Board of Elections ruled them illegitimate. de Blasio's managers are working to settle things. "The court will put him back on," suggests a Queens Crap commenter. "He must have just pissed off the commissioners." de Blasio is backed by former Mayor Koch and the Working Families Party, and faces councilmember Eric Gioia, former Public Advocate Mark Green and former NYCLU president Norman Siegel.