CANTON — A Democratic Party caucus will be held in Canton, pursuant to New York State Election Law on May 12 at 6 p.m. at the Canton Pavilion to nominate a slate of Democratic candidates for town and village offices.

Canton town seats on the ballot for the Nov. 2 general election include town supervisor, town clerk, town superintendent of highways, town justice, and two town council seats. In addition two village trustee seats will be up for vote on Election Day.

All duly enrolled members of the Democratic Party in the town and village are eligible to participate.

Democratic Party members will select candidates from among their number to run for the seats.

In late March, a slate of Democratic candidates for the town positions had filed petitions with the county Board of Elections to run in November. Those petitions were subsequently disqualified after an objection to the party’s petition process for selecting candidates was upheld based on a filing issue.

The disqualification causes the Canton Democrats to pick their candidates at a caucus instead of by petition.

Before the disqualification, the following candidates had filed petitions and they are expected to try to garner support for candidacy at the May 12 caucus: Supervisor, Mary Ann Ashley; Town Clerk, Karin Blackburn; Town Council, Dave Nelson and Jim Smith for two full-term seats and Martha Foley Smith for the two-year unexpired term.

They will be joined by Karen McAuliffe who announced her candidacy for town supervisor on the Democratic line on April 1. McAuliffe is also listed on the Conservative line on the county Board of Elections’ current candidate list for the fall races.

The deadline to file a certificate of nomination from the May 12 caucus is July 22.

Republicans and Conservatives running for town seats include Deputy Town Clerk Heidi Smith running for town clerk; and three candidates for town council, current executive director for the Village of Potsdam Housing Authority Robert Santamoor, Paul Baxter and former town recreation director John Taillon. In addition, Republican incumbent Town Justice Michael Morgan is running again.

The Board of Elections also lists a pending primary election between Jim Gibson and Steve Smith who are running as Republicans and Conservatives for town superintendent of highways.