Staten Island Advance

Staten Islander collects 2nd batch of signatures for Council race.

Rev. Tony Baker filed his petitions under the "Prepared to Lead, Ready to Serve" party.For Staten Island's Rev. Tony Baker, the devil is in the details.

Last week his campaign filed the threshold number of petition signatures to get him on the ballot in the Feb. 24 North Shore City Council special election.

Since it's a non-partisan race, the independent nominating petitions must include a made-up party name and logo. They got the name part down OK - "Prepared to Lead, Ready to Serve" - but forgot about the pesky logo, Rev. Baker acknowledged today. It was to have been the Liberty Bell.

Bottom line: He could have been bounced from the ballot despite having filed 1,796 petition signatures - 1,464 are needed - in advance of Thursday's midnight filing deadline.

While Rev. Baker said he was not officially notified of the problem by the Board of Elections, and an elections spokeswoman couldn't be reached today, his supporters hit the streets again over the last 48 hours to collect a second batch of petitions totaling 1,877 signatures, this time with his chosen Liberty Bell designation.

Better safe than sorry, said Rev. Baker, pastor of St. Philip's Baptist Church, Port Richmond.

"I have the support of almost 4,000 people on my petitions," said Rev. Baker. "Even if the Board of Elections wants to throw the others out, and that's up to them, I am on the ballot. If they want to disenfranchise almost 1,800 people who signed the first petitions, that is up to them."

Meanwhile, Tom Curitore of St. George said he filed in excess of the threshold number of signatures under the banner of the "North Shore First." That could not be independently confirmed with the board.

Curitore, a former borough Department of Transportation commissioner, joins Ken Mitchell, John Tabacco and Rev. Baker.

-- Reported by Judy L. Randall