In a unique turn of events, Alexander Hamilton, 30, successfully sued the clerk of Hudson County, N.J. for removing what he argued was his proper name from the ballot of a Jersey City School Board election. (No; not that Alexander Hamilton. The other Alexander Hamilton.)
See for yourself in the PDF below.
According to the suit, the clerk, E. Junior Maldonato, rejected Hamilton’s nominating petition on the basis that Hamilton wasn’t using his real name. Hamilton is running for the school board seat under the “Change for Children” bracket.
Hamilton’s legal name is reportedly Vernon Alexander Hamilton, but he usually goes by “Alexander,” as his father’s name is also Vernon Hamilton. “Alexander” Hamilton claims that the community knows him as Alexander and that to run by another name would feel false.
The lawsuit, which alleges that Maldonato’s actions were “arbitrary, capricious, unreasonable and contrary to the law,” was only filed after Hamilton petitioned the clerk on August 1st to change his mind regarding Hamilton’s name. When the clerk denied that petition, Hamilton felt he had no choice but to sue.
On August 9th, after hearing the case, Judge Peter F. Bariso Jr. made three orders. First, Hamilton must be reinstated on the ballot; second, he must be reinstated under the name “Alexander Hamilton;” and third, he must be bracketed under the slogan “Change for Children” with his running mates Noemi Velazquez and Asheenia Johnson.
The Alexander Hamilton of whom you’re thinking died in a duel with Aaron Burr on July 11, 1804, in New Jersey.
Hamilton Order 8-9-19 by Law&Crime on Scribd
[Photo via Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images.]
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